>To George Imrie, Dick Allen, Arron Morris, Lloyd Spear

Hi Matthew:

You meant Allen Dick, I’m sure. Anyway, good luck with the ordinance. Back
in the mid 1980's  local beekeepers here in Anchorage went to the municipal
assembly and asked that a law be placed on the books allowing people to
keep bees in the city.  Prior to this time, people did have bees within the
city limits. However, there was a vaguely worded general nuisance law that
was sometimes used against beekeepers if a neighbor complained about ‘those
damn bees’ next door. The beekeepers’ request for a law wasn't taken
seriously at first. The assembly rescheduled beekeeping hearings, etc.
whenever those things came up. Eventually it was drafted. Part of the
wording was:

 "...colonies shall:

a. Be at least 25 feet away from any lot line not in common ownership, or

b. Be oriented with entrances facing away from adjacent property, or

c. Be place at least eight feet above ground level, or

d. Be placed behind a fence at least 6 feet in height and extending at
least 10 feet beyond the hive in both directions."

One of the assembly members insisted on changing the word "or" in the
language to "and". So, it was back for more talks and discussion., Finally
the worried assembly member was persuaded that any of the original
stipulations would keep bees from flying directly across any neighbor’s
property.

It has worked out pretty well over the years. When I first got bees my next
door neighbor was watching (unbeknownst to me) as I worked a hive. After a
few minutes he asked “Are those bees? Don’t you get stung?” We had a chat
and I convinced him, or so I thought, that the bees would be ok. Every now
and then I’d see him and he’d always ask ‘how are the bees doing?’ or
something to that effect. He seemed at ease and sometimes even
enthusiastic. One day while I was in my garage I heard him telling one of
his kids: “Get away from that fence! He’s got those goddam bees over there,
you know!”  Without the ordinance, who knows if I would be keeping bees
here. My neighbor does like free honey, though.

Regards,
Dick Allen--not to be confused with Allen Dick (I'm still a new guy)