Bees AdobeStock_261094642_web
Local News

Flossmoor board OKs rules for beekeeping in village

To bee or not to bee. That is the question.

Flossmoor gave the green light to beekeeping when village trustees, at their Feb. 17 meeting, unanimously approved more than a dozen regulations on the legal maintenance of backyard hives. Beehives in Flossmoor were previously prohibited in the village code.

To bee or not to bee. That is the question.

Flossmoor gave the green light to beekeeping when village trustees, at their Feb. 17 meeting, unanimously approved more than a dozen regulations on the legal maintenance of backyard hives.

Beehives in Flossmoor were previously prohibited in the village code.

Flossmoor could soon be buzzing with activity after village trustees approved an ordinance allowing beekeeping. (Stock photo)

Under the new rules, beekeepers must register each year with the village and also with the Illinois Department of Agriculture. Only eight registrations will be permitted each year in Flossmoor. The new ordinance sets requirements for where beehives can be located and their proximity to lot lines.

The ordinance requires that a flyway for bees be established. Flyways are to be six feet high and consist of a lattice or solid fence, or dense hedge set no more than five feet from hive openings and extending at least two feet in width from either side of the hive opening.

In a memo to trustees, Building and Zoning Administrator Scott Bugner said village officials met last September with Phil DeSantis, a local resident, about the possibility of allowing beehives in town. That meeting focused on what Flossmoor could do to allow beekeeping in the village while making sure that ample protections for residents are in place.

DeSantis had been working with Flossmoor’s Green Commission on the proposal to allow beehives in the village, Bugner said.

Bees play an important environmental role as pollinators. In recent years, the worldwide bee population has declined drastically due to pesticides, parasites and other factors.

Following the September meeting Bugner researched ordinances on beekeeping in 10 Chicago-area suburbs — Bartlett, Elgin, Elmhurst, Evanston, Oak Park, River Forest, Riverside, Skokie, St. Charles and Westmont. Regulations from those communities were incorporated into the proposal for an ordinance that was presented to Flossmoor trustees in November.

Homewood neither allows nor prohibits beekeeping in its village code, Bugner said. 

There was little discussion of the ordinance before trustees took their vote.

“The ordinance is very thorough,” Trustee Diane Williams said. “It answers any questions I may have had.”

Under the ordinance:

  • The village’s registration fee for beekeepers is $75.
  • Renewal applicants will be given priority over new beekeeping applicants. New applicant registrations will be issued on a first come, first served basis. 
  • All applicants must give no less than 30 days prior notice about proposed beekeeping to every property owner and tenant “abutting the property on which the beekeeping activities shall be conducted.” 
  • Residents who live next to a proposed beekeeping site, and who have been medically diagnosed with an allergy to bee venom, may object to an application in writing following notification by the applicant. The village may deny a registration based on the objection.
  • Beekeeping may not be conducted within 150 feet of a park or a school. 
  • Beekeeping may be conducted only in residential districts and must be located in the rear yards of the residential property with a setback equal to the setback required for accessory uses in the applicable zoning district.
  • “Conspicuous weatherproof signage” must be located at the entrance to the rear yard providing notice of beekeeping activities.
  • No more than two colonies are allowed at each apiary and no more than two apiaries are permitted at a residential lot.
  • Beekeepers must provide a convenient source of water to the bees at all times during the year so the bees will not congregate at swimming pools, pet watering bowls, birdbaths or other water sources.

Bugner said he expects the ordinance will go into effect April 1.

News by email

Please enable JavaScript in your browser to complete this form.
Name

Free weekly newsletter

Please enable JavaScript in your browser to complete this form.
Name
Most read stories this week