TRAVERSE CITY, Mich. — If it’s OK to have chickens in the backyard, why not bees?
Local officials agreed, and passed an ordinance to allow bee keeping inside the city limits.
Commissioner Mary Ann Moore supported the ban because some people are allergic to bee stings.
"One person told me they almost lost their little son," Moore said. "That person's health is more important than the neighbor's ability to keep bees."
She had proposed a 100-foot ban from homes where those allergic to bee stings lived.
Commissioners Jody Bergman and Jeanine Easterday said other ordinances, such as flight barriers and a restriction on the number of hives, addressed that concern.
Bee enthusiasts told commissioners stings from honey bees are not common because they tend to avoid humans.
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Details for this story were provided by The Record-Eagle in Traverse City, Mich.
