A proposed beehive on Ursula Bauer’s Delmar property at 200 Winne Road will be subject to a swarm of restrictions imposed by the Bethlehem Planning Board.
On Tuesday, Aug. 21, the board approved Bauer’s site plan to locate beehives on her property with three specific amendments attached. A 6-foot high wooden fence around Bauer’s back yard will have to be installed along with a 40-foot setback in front of the hives and a fully replenished water supply for the bees to use before the hives can be located on the site.
Bauer’s hives currently sit on property in Glenmont as she considers her options.
The newly passed restrictions are part of the town’s comprehensive plan allowing for several measures to occur in a residential neighborhood for the production of honey from bees deemed an agricultural use.
Chairman of the planning board Parker Mathusa originally wanted Bauer to install a second fence closer to the hives within the 6-foot enclosed yard fence, but members of the planning board objected to that measure.
This is a very restrictive proposal, said new board member Kate Powers. `I see a huge disparity and no record reflecting problems in unregulated hives.`
Several beekeepers from Bethlehem attended the planning board meeting to support beehives on Bauer’s property, but those same landowners do not have to conform to the new set of standards.
`I want a double level of security outside the fence for securing kids from coming into the yard,` said Mathusa.
Bauer told the board that if a second fence were mandated, she would no longer have the resources to transfer the hives from their current location to her yard.
`Addressing perceived safety issues can be difficult since they are not founded in reality,` Bauer said.
Board member John Smolinsky said he favored the beehives on Bauer’s property, but, like Powers, he objected to the second fence within a fence.
`I support the proposal but am not in support of the overly restrictive measures,` Smolinsky said.
Bauer will be placing between 15,000 and 20,000 bees on her site if she goes along with the planning board’s restrictions.
The members of the planning board took several individual votes on the many amendments to the beehive proposal before a final vote was decided.
Board member Howard Engel voted against the measure in its entirety.
`I don’t feel it’s a proper location so I don’t support what’s here,` he said.
Planning board member Dan Odell said he believes the planning board conducted the proper research before decided to move forward with the proposal with approved restrictions.
`I think the proposal here strikes a balance, and I think I can support it,` Odell said.
One of the reasons for the many restrictions, according to Mathusa, was because the majority of residents in Bauer’s neighborhood feared having the hives placed next to their homes.
`The site is surrounded by people who are opposed to it,` Mathusa said.
Bauer has time now to respond to the planning board’s proposed changes to her site plan, and the board will review the modifications.
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