75C - PH AMND MUNI CODE SEC 5-1 AND 5-7

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REQUEST FOR COUNCIL ACTION CITY COUNCIL MEETING DATE: NOVEMBER 7, 2017 TITLE: PUBLIC HEARING - AMEND SANTA ANA MUNICIPAL CODE SECTIONS 5-1 (DEFINITIONS) AND 5-7 (BEES PROHIBITED) TO ALLOW RESIDENTIAL BEEKEEPING (STRATEGIC PLAN NO. 5, 2) 1 + C MANAGER RECOMMENDED ACTION CLERK OF COUNCIL USE ONLY: APPROVED ❑ As Recommended ❑ As Amended ❑ Ordinance on 1" Reading ❑ Ordinance on 2nd Reading ❑ Implementing Resolution ❑ Set Public Hearing For CONTINUED TO FILE NUMBER Adopt an ordinance amending Santa Ana Municipal Code (SAMC) Sections 5-1 (Definitions) and 5-7 (Bees Prohibited) to allow residential beekeeping. DISCUSSION In 1979, the City Council adopted Ordinance No. NS -1466 prohibiting the keeping of any hive or swarm of honey bees or any other kind of wasp or bee within City limits, with the exception of apiaries located in the city's General Agricultural (A-1) zoning district with an approved conditional use permit (CUP). Beekeeping is currently not allowed in any other zoning district. With a growing interest by the Santa Ana community in supporting the decreasing bee population and in the by-products of beekeeping, the Planning and Building Agency was directed by the City Council to research and develop code language to allow beekeeping on residential properties, similarly to those adopted by the cities of Los Angeles, New York, Seattle, Portland and San Francisco. The Changing Context in Urban Beekeeping Bees have been declining in great numbers for decades and are threatened with Colony Collapse Disorder (CCD). There are a number of factors contributing to this decline, including changing weather patterns, loss of forage, bee pests and the use of pesticides. Bees play a crucial role in our ecosystem and economy as they pollinate more than 1/3 of the world's crops. Indirectly, bees are also responsible for products like alfalfa pollination that produce alfalfa seeds, which assist in the production of meat and dairy products. By having bees within city boundaries, plants of all types will benefit and garden crops will have much higher yields. Allowing for small-scale beekeeping in urban areas is also thought to be a potential means to mitigate the effects of CCD. In light of these benefits, many communities have begun to explore drafting new or modifying existing land use ordinances and/or policies pertaining to beekeeping in urban areas. 75C-1