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Draft would add accessory dwelling units, backyard hens and beekeeping; daycare rules to follow state classifications
Summary
City staff presented proposed accessory uses in the draft zoning code including accessory dwelling units (ADUs), two categories of daycare homes as defined by Ohio, backyard hens with safeguards, and beekeeping; use‑specific restrictions and buffers would apply.
City Planner Chris Schonick told residents the draft zoning code explicitly lists a number of accessory uses the city has not regulated previously, including accessory dwelling units, daycare homes, backyard hens and beekeeping.
“Some of these are, they need to meet a certain distance from other uses of the same, vernacular. Requirements such as fencing or screening, setbacks from other property lines, are some of these requirements that are listed for these uses that I’ve mentioned here today,” Schonick said.
Schonick described accessory dwelling units — commonly called mother‑in‑law suites — as a tool to address housing costs by allowing a second dwelling unit on a lot. The draft also addresses daycare homes using Ohio’s state categories: Schonick said “a type B home can be allowed in any residential area, cannot be restricted by zoning, and that is defined as 1 to 6 children being in the home taken care of. Anything that exceeds that amount is 7 to 12 children.” The city plans to permit larger home daycares with use‑specific restrictions such as parking and limits on concentration near incompatible uses.
On backyard animals, Schonick said the draft focuses on allowing backyard hens with safeguards to protect public health and neighbors. “A lot of neighboring communities are permitting this,” he said, naming Cleveland Heights and Parma Heights as local examples. Beekeeping is also listed as a permitted accessory use with conditions; Schonick noted several Northeast Ohio communities permit it, but emphasized the draft includes restrictions to protect neighbors.
Cannabis dispensing facilities and other sensitive uses would remain subject to distance buffers and conditional review. Schonick said the draft carries forward a 1,000‑foot separation from schools, parks and other dispensaries as part of the use‑specific criteria for cannabis uses.
All accessory uses in the draft are described as subordinate to a principal use on the same lot; staff emphasized that accessory uses “cannot have an accessory use without a principal use.” The draft’s use‑specific criteria will be vetted through legal review and then through planning commission and council hearings where residents can comment.
