Bees GROWING FOOD IN FLINT. What is it? Why? Why regulate? What? Where? How? What is allowed in Other Cities?

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1 Bees A typical bee hive is a cedar or pine box that has a bottom board, a cover, brood chambers, a queen excluder (that allows bees to pass through, but not the queen) and supers, where the honey is gathered. New York City urban beekeepers group? Bees pollinate 1/3 of our food supply in the U.S. Honeybee populations have been threatened by unknown causes. City bees create unique and distinctive honeys from neighborhoods. Besides localized production of honey, bees also produce pollen, wax and propolis (a gluelike byproduct that may have healing qualities). Eating locally produced honey can help boost your immune system. Bees in New York City Beekeeping can be allowed as an accessory to a residence when registered with the state Department of Agriculture. Portland, ME bees Since bees are not specifically regulated by the City of Flint beekeeping could be limited to a urban agriculture district or allowed in residential areas. Some cities that allow bees use one or more of the following restrictions: limit the number of hives require that they be kept 25 ft from property lines hives must be kept on property of more than 10,000 square feet. require a permit Bees on the White House lawn as part of the Victory Garden Project $25 permit and limit on number of hives not to exceed 1 per 1/4 acre. Allow 4 hives behind a 6ft high fence 25 ft away from property lines on lots bigger than 10,000 square feet St. Paul, MN Allows bees and doesn t place any restrictions.

2 Producing food for Sale? A garden or farm where food is produced to be sold to the general public. Food could be sold on-site, at another location or delivered to subscribers. Also known as a market garden or a market farm. Producing food for sale creates income for gardeners, organizations or businesses. It also produces food for families, restaurants or institutions wanting to purchase local, fresh food. Blue Park Farm, 1-acre market farm in Cleveland, Ohio Youth Karate Ka Hoop house Liberty Lands in Philadelphia, PA on a former Superfund site Producing food for sale, without greenhouses and animals, is currently allowed in Flint. The zoning ordinance only allows non-commercial greenhouses which hampers a garden s ability to produce food for sale year round. Food can not be sold on-site. Many market farms or gardens in other cities keep animals to offer protein options and create organic fertilizer. Cleveland allows food to be sold on site in the Urban Garden District. Producing food for sale is allowed everywhere in Flint, except in the commercial and industrial zoning districts. Other communities allow market gardens or farms in multiplefamily, commercial or urban garden districts. To protect adjacent properties, the City could require fences or landscaping between houses and gardens. Most other communities do not require buffers between gardens and other properties. Also, bushes and fences could limit sunlight on the garden and limit it s production. Cleveland, OH Plant and animal production for sale allowed in Urban Garden District. Sale on-site is allowed. For sale food production is allowed in some residential zones, general commercial and downtown commercial zones and all industrial zones. Plants production only with greenhouses in commercial districts & animals husbandry as accessory use in commercial. Food fish, water plant and animal production Earthworks greenhouse in Detroit

3 Chickens? Along with growing plants for food, raising chickens has been a common practice for thousands of years in both rural and urban areas. Very large-scale confinement facilities in rural areas are more common these days. However, hundreds of municipalities allow residents to raise chickens. Eggs and meat provide high quality protein for a balanced diet and composted manure provides excellent fertilizer for plants. Whether for home use or for sale, production can supplement family income and help to feed your family. A chicken igloo! Raising chickens is currently restricted in the City s Zoning Ordinance. Many other cities allow between three and unlimited chickens in residential areas. The city could remove the current restrictions and put a new ordinance in place to allow for chickens with certain conditions in place to protect the neighboring property owners. Raising chickens is explicitly restricted in all zoning districts in the City of Flint. Chicken coop Some cities that allow chickens use one or more of the following restrictions to protect neighborhood property owners: limit the number of chickens, require that chickens be penned, require that they be kept anywhere between 10 to 100 ft from the property line. restrict roosters. require a permit that cost between $5 and $50 per chicken. Baltimore, MD Evansville, IN Lincoln, NE Simple chicken tractor Up to 4 chickens can be kept (no roosters) as long as they are confined to a moveable pen that is kept 25 feet away from all residence No more than 6 chickens allowed, coop must be at least 50 feet from any neighbor dwelling, and you have to pay a $5 license per premise annually Can have two chickens without a permit

4 Ten Reasons to Buy Local Food 1. Locally grown food tastes better. While produce that is purchased in the supermarket or a big-box store has been in transit or cold-stored for days or weeks, produce that you purchase at your local farmer's market has often been picked within 24 hours of your purchase. This freshness not only affects the taste of your food, but the nutritional value which declines with time. 2. Local produce is better for you. Studies showed that fresh produce loses nutrients quickly. Locally grown food, purchased soon after harvest, retains its nutrients. 3. Local food has more variety. When a farmer is producing food that will not travel a long distance, will have a shorter shelf life, and does not have a high-yield demand, the farmer is free to try small crops of various fruits and vegetables that would probably never make it to a large supermarket. 4. Local food is GMO-free. Although biotechnology companies have been trying to commercialize genetically modified fruits and vegetables, they are currently licensing them only to large factory-style farms. Local farmers don t have access to genetically modified seed, and most of them wouldn t use it even if they could. A June 2001 survey by ABC News showed that 93% of Americans want labels on genetically modified food - most so that they can avoid it. If you are opposed to eating bio-engineered food, it is likely that locally grown produce was bred the old-fashioned way, as nature intended. 5. Eating local means more for the local economy. According to a study by the New Economics Foundation in London, a dollar spent locally generates twice as much income for the local economy. When businesses are not owned locally, money leaves the community at every transaction. 6. Eating local is safer. Food with less distance to travel from farm to plate has less susceptibility to harmful contamination. 7. Local food supports local farms. With fewer than 1 million Americans now listing farming as their primary occupation, farmers are a vanishing breed. Local farmers who sell direct to consumers cut out the middle man and get full retail price for their crops. Living wage helps promote a new generation of farmers. No Farms. No Food. 8. Local food builds a stronger community. When you buy direct from the farmer, you are re-establishing a time-honored connection between the eater and the grower. Knowing the farmers gives you insight into the seasons, the weather, and what is involved in the of raising food and how it was grown. 9. Supporting local providers supports responsible land development. When you buy local, you give those with local open space - farms and pastures - an economic reason to stay open and undeveloped. 10. Local food promotes Regional Food Self Reliance. Dependency on far away food sources leaves a region vulnerable to supply disruptions, and removes any real accountability of producer to consumer. It also tends to promote larger, less diversified farms that hurt both the environment and local economies/communities. Regional food production systems, on the other hand, keep the food supply in the hands of many, providing interesting job and self-employment opportunities, and enabling people to influence how their food is grown.

5 Hoophouse on Philadelphia St. in the City of Flint Hoophouses? A hoophouse is a series of large hoops or bows made of metal, plastic pipe or even wood covered with a layer of heavy greenhouse plastic. The heavy plastic is stretched tight and fastened to baseboards with strips of wood, metal, wire or even used irrigation tape and staples. You can build one for a few hundred dollars to over $10,000. Common hoophouse widths are 12, 16, 20, 26, 30, and 34 ft while common lengths are 24, 48, 72, 96, or 144 ft. Food and flowers can be grown in hoop houses without additional energy. Hoophouses provide four to six weeks of earlier production in spring and later production in the fall. By adding an inner layer of cover inside a hoophouse and planting cold-hardy varieties, you can grow 12 months of the year without any additional heat. in Genesee Twp. in winter Hoophouses are not currently defined under City code, are seen as a structure and must be approved by the Planning Commission. Many townships do not require a permit for a hoop house built on private property. Hoophouses are not clearly defined under City building code. They are not classified as an accessory or temporary structure on a vacant lot. The zoning ordinance allows noncommercial greenhouses in residential zones, which a hoop house used by a non-profit could be. Other cities allow hoop houses in residential, commercial, and urban garden districts. It is currently legal to build a hoophouse on a property with an existing house. The location (how far from the road or property lines), size and height of a hoop house could be regulated, with different requirements in different zoning districts. Although unusual, fences or shrubs could be required to buffer adjacent properties in Genesee Twp. Cleveland, OH in the Urban Garden District and must be 5 feet from the property line of land zoned residential. as accessory structures to agricultural uses in the open space, large lot residential, commercial and industrial districts. as accessory structures to horticulture uses in the commercial districts.