Asheville, NC Animal Ordinances: Beekeeping (2026)

Sec. 3-16 of the Asheville City Code sets a flat rule for hobby beekeeping: no beehive may be kept within 100 feet of any household other than the beekeeper's own. The setback runs from the hive to the nearest neighboring dwelling, not to a property line, so a beekeeper on a larger lot has more flexibility in where the hive sits relative to the house next door. Before placing any hive, the ordinance requires the keeper to obtain a permit under Article IV of Chapter 3, the same permitting article used for other animal-keeping permits in the code, such as the excess-animal permit in Sec.

3-10. That means a prospective beekeeper applies through the animal control administrator, and the hive is subject to the same inspection and revocation framework that governs other permitted animal-keeping uses in the city: the administrator can refuse or pull the permit for a material misstatement on the application, a violation of the permit's conditions, or a violation of other federal, state or local law relating to animals, zoning or nuisances. Chapter 3 defines a 'beehive' as any receptacle or container made or prepared for bees, or one bees actually inhabit, so the rule reaches everything from a single hobby box to a multi-hive backyard apiary.

Because Sec. 3-16 sits inside the same chapter as the public-nuisance rules, an unpermitted or too-close hive can also be cited as a nuisance under Sec. 3-9 if it creates a hazard for neighbors.