NORTHFIELD CENTER TOWNSHIP — A Northfield Center Township family received approval March 26 to keep a market hog on their Vesta Avenue property as part of their daughter’s 4-H livestock project, after the Board of Zoning Appeals granted a temporary variance on a 4-1 vote.
Jennifer Cook appeared before the board on behalf of her family and daughter Jolene, who was unable to attend. The family applied for relief from township regulations that prohibit keeping non-domestic animals in platted residential developments. The variance covers one pig from April 1 through Aug. 2, 2026 — the date of the Summit County Fair, where the hog will be sold at auction as part of the 4-H market project.
Cook described the educational value of the program for her daughter, who has previously raised rabbits and chickens through 4-H and hopes to pursue a career in agriculture or veterinary medicine. The family plans to keep the hog in an existing shed on the property that has electricity, ventilation, and a cement floor. Daily waste management, including removal of manure and bedding from the property, is a condition of the variance.
Notification letters were sent to neighboring property owners. Written statements in support came from the neighboring insurance business and a resident across the street. The next-door neighbor, Janet Riedthaler, attended the hearing and told the board she was initially skeptical but ultimately supports the project, noting she was a 4-H member herself for more than 20 years. She requested the variance be explicitly temporary.
If the family wishes to pursue a livestock project in future years, they will need to apply again. Trustees had previously waived the BZA filing fee for the application given its educational nature.
