Bellbrook planning board recommends zoning amendment to allow limited small livestock in residential areas

The City of Bellbrook Planning Board on June 26, 2025 voted to recommend that City Council adopt a proposed amendment to Article 18 of the Bellbrook zoning code that would allow limited small livestock in residential areas, subject to permits and specific size, siting and care requirements.

City staff member Rob Schumer, who presented the draft ordinance (planning board case PB 25-03), said the amendment was prepared after staff, legal review and Council input identified inconsistencies between the zoning code and the municipal animal ordinance. Schumer said the draft "defines and allows the keeping of small livestock provided certain criteria and regulations are met," including a required zoning permit and measures to limit noise, odor and public-health impacts.

The proposed rules set maximum numbers tied to lot size: lots smaller than a half-acre would be limited to three small livestock; half-acre to 1 acre, six; 1 to 2.5 acres, 12; 2.5 to 5 acres, 15. Lots larger than five acres would be treated as agricultural. Schumer described sheltering requirements as "outdoor covered predator-proof" and said the draft requires minimum shelter sizes drawn from best-practice guidance. He told the board, "In no case shall [the shelter] be any closer than 50 feet to any other adjacent residential structure," and "no closer than 25 feet to an abutting property line."

The draft clarifies that the allowance is for personal household use only and is not intended to permit commercial agricultural activity in residential neighborhoods. It also addresses feed storage, manure disposal and butchering: the draft says butchering of any small livestock kept for meat should be "contained indoors, not done ... outdoors, especially in the neighborhood area," Schumer said.

Board members and meeting participants asked several questions about how the amendment interacts with the municipal animal ordinance and with pet definitions. Schumer said the zoning amendment is limited to whether small livestock are allowed on a property; the municipal animal code, which contains definitions and enforcement provisions, would remain the place to resolve pet vs. livestock definitions and enforcement procedures. On enforcement he explained that zoning or property-maintenance codes would be the likely enforcement mechanism if a permit were not obtained.

Schumer told the board that, under the existing municipal code, rabbits are currently the only small livestock explicitly allowed; other animals would remain governed by the animal ordinance. The draft also includes a short list of animals that the amendment expressly excludes from small-livestock allowances in residential zones: roosters, geese, peafowl, turkeys, ostriches and emus. Schumer said that community interest in chickens and other animals informed the work but that this draft does not itself expand the animal-definition section of the municipal code.

After discussion, the planning board considered a motion to recommend approval of the Article 18 amendment with removal of section C of the draft. The motion carried on a roll-call vote with all present voting yes (Mister Bennett: yes; Mister Boehmer: yes; Dr. Darling: yes; Mister Tuttle: yes; Dr. Van Vadhuysen: yes). The board chair declared the motion carried. Schumer said that, following the planning board recommendation, City Council will take the recommendation, possibly revise the draft further, and hold a separate public hearing if it proceeds to ordinance form.

The amendment package and the planning board discussion focused on creating a consistent local approach that balances property-owner use with neighbors' quality-of-life concerns; the board recommended the measure with the removal of section C and sent the package to City Council for further action and public comment.