Monday, September 19, 2011
There was a lot of buzzing this weekend.
There was a lot of buzz happening this weekend at the Patuxent Wildlife Research Refuge in Laurel as the Maryland State Beekeepers Association (MSBA) hosted its 4th annual Maryland Harvest Festival on Saturday. Hundreds descended onto the refuge grounds to participate in bee-related activities, such as honey harvesting and a beekeeper rodeo. Participants could educate themselves on the honeybee's environmental importance. Honeybees are often blamed for or associated as being aggressive, but that is far from the truth, according to Steve McDaniel, past president of the MSBA. He said that honeybees are gentle vegetarians. McDaniel has been in the beekeeping business for 32 years and currently maintains 20 bee colonies. McDaniel said each …
Friday, February 11, 2011
Council unanimously votes to amend zoning regulations
And the bees win. The County Council Monday night unanimously approved a bill that could expand the number of apiaries in Howard County. The bill amends zoning regulations to allow apiaries, so long as they are at least 25 feet from abutting properties. An amendment to the bill allows for a 10-foot setback, so long as the entryways for bees are directed at least six feet above decks or other outside structures or are protected by a solid, 6-foot barrier. “I feel wonderfully about this because I feel like I’ve freed 14,000 acres in the middle of Howard County to be able to house bees,” said council member Mary Kay Sigaty, D-Columbia, who sponsored the bill with Greg Fox, R-Fulton. “And, who knows,” she added, “when I’m no longer a council …
Wednesday, January 5, 2011
The bee bill, sign regulations, design guidelines and veterans' commission will come back before the council at Jan. 18 public hearings.
With several major topics before them on a single evening – the proposed creation of a veterans' commission, bills concerning sign regulations and design guidelines in downtown Columbia, and a bill about backyard beekeeping in the county – the Howard County Council decided it needed more time before making other decisions. The council voted Monday evening to push those decisions back until after they've heard once more from area residents. Public hearings have been scheduled for Jan. 18. The additional weeks will also give more time to staff to flesh out what council members are looking for in the bills – time that the staff didn't have between days off for holidays and the mandatory furloughs they had to take at the end of 2010, according…
