Lee's Summit, MO Animal Ordinances: Beekeeping (2026)

Section 5-7 requires anyone who places, establishes or maintains a hive, stand, box or apiary in Lee's Summit to first buy an annual license running January 1 through December 31, priced under the City's Schedule of Fees and Charges and due in full even if purchased partway through the year. Every colony must be housed in a Langstroth, Top Bar or Warre hive with removable frames, kept sound and usable, with a maximum height of six feet per hive. Hive counts are tied to lot size and distance: a lot of 8,000 square feet or smaller may hold no more than two beehives, and a larger lot is still capped at two hives unless they sit between 50 and 400 feet from any house or building on the property, other than the beekeeper's own residence.

Placement rules layer on top: no hive may sit within 100 feet of the road, sidewalk or frontage property line, closer than 25 feet to an adjoining developed property line, closer than 50 feet to a neighboring house or building, closer than 50 feet to the nearest public street or sidewalk, or within 50 feet of any tethered or caged animal, and the entrance must face away from sidewalks, neighboring homes, pets and gathering areas. A hive within 50 feet of a property line also needs a six-foot flyway barrier of solid wall or fence running parallel to the line.

Fresh water must sit within 20 feet of every hive, and a keeper who places hives on someone else's land needs written, revocable permission and must post identifying contact information on the equipment. Schools, colleges, universities, physicians' offices and research labs are exempt for study, observation or medical research.