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ARTICLE II DEFINITIONS [Amended 3/98]
For the purposes of this Ordinance, certain terms, or words used herein shall be
interpreted as follows:
1. All words used in the present tense shall include the future; all words in the
singular number include the plural number, and all words in the plural number
include the singular number; and the word "building" includes the word
"structure", and the word "dwelling" includes "residence"; the word "person"
includes "corporation", "association", as well as an "individual"; the word "shall"
is mandatory and the word "may" is permissive; the word "lot" includes the words
"plot" or "parcel"; the words "used" or "occupied" includes the words "intended",
"designed" or "arranged to be used or occupied".
2. The words "this Ordinance" means the text of this Ordinance as well as all maps,
tables, graphics, schedules as included or attached as enacted or subsequently
amended.
3. Unless the context clearly indicates to the contrary, where a regulation involves
two or more items, conditions, provisions, or events connected by the conjunction
"and," "or," "either...or," the conjunction shall be interpreted as follows:
a. "And" indicates that all the connected items, conditions, provisions, or
events shall apply.
b. "Or" indicates the connected items, conditions, provisions or events may
apply singly or in any combination.
c. "Either...or" indicates that the connected items, conditions, provisions, or
events shall apply singly, but not in combination.
4. Terms not herein defined shall have the meaning customarily assigned to them in
the Webster New Collegiate Dictionary.
5. Terms defined:
Abutting (lot or parcel): A lot or parcel which shares a common border with the subject
lot or parcel.
Accessory Building: A building or structure customarily incidental and subordinate to
the principal structure and located on the same lot as the principal building. Does not
include any building or structure designed to be used for human habitation.
Accessory Use: A use customarily incidental and subordinate to the principal use of the
land or building and located on the same lot as the principal use.
Adult: A person eighteen (18) years of age or older or a person who is placed in an adult
foster care family home or an adult foster care small group home pursuant to Section 5
(6) or (8) of 1973 PA 116, MCL 722.115. [amended 11/02]
Adult Bookstore: An establishment wherein more than twenty (20) percent of its stock in
trade is comprised of books, magazines, and other publications having as dominant
theme, matter depicting, describing, or relating to "Specified Sexual Activities" or
"Specified Anatomical Areas" as defined in this Article, or an establishment with a
segment or section devoted to the sale or display of such material.
Adult Foster Care Home or Facility: (See Foster Care Facilities - Adult) [amended
11/02]
Adult Motion Picture Theater: An enclosed building or outdoor area used for presenting
filmed material distinguished or characterized by an emphasis on matter depicting,
describing, or relating to "Specified Sexual Activities" or "Specified Anatomical Areas"
as defined in this Article for observation by patrons therein.
Agriculture: The carrying on of any agricultural activity, including the raising of trees,
crops, plants, livestock, small animals or fowl.
Alley: Any dedicated public way affording a secondary means of access to abutting
property.
Antique Shop; A retail establishment which sells objects having special value because of
age, especially domestic items, or a piece of furniture or handicraft esteemed for its
artistry, beauty or period of origin. [amended 10/05]
Apartment: A room or suite of rooms, including bath and kitchen facilities, in a two-
family or multiple family dwelling intended and designed for use as a residence by a
single family.
Apartment House: (See dwelling, multiple-family).
Amusement Center: Any establishment providing recreation or entertainment games for
pay including, but not limited to, pinball, video games, pool, bowling, bingo, miniature
golf, and other like activities involving active participation by the customer.
Asphalt batching facilities: A temporary facility for the production and manufacture of
asphalt paving material.
Assisted Living Facility: A combination of housing, personalized supportive services
and health care designed to meet the individual needs of persons who need help with the
activities of daily living, but do not need the skilled medical care provided in a nursing
home. The `activities of daily living' are generally considered to include eating, bathing,
dressing, getting to and using the bathroom, getting in or out of bed or chair, and
mobility. [amended 11/03]
Automobile Repair:
1. Major automobile repair: General repair, rebuilding or reconditioning of
engines, motor vehicles, or trailers; collision service, including body
frame, or fender straightening or repair; overall painting or paint shops;
vehicle steam cleaning.
2. Minor automobile repair: Minor repairs, incidental body and fender work,
painting and upholstering, replacement of parts and motor service to
passenger automobiles and trucks not exceeding one and one-half (1-1/2)
ton capacity, but not including any operation specified under "major
automobile repair".
Automobile or Trailer Sales Area: An open area other than a street used for the display,
sale, or rental of new or used automobiles or other motor vehicles.
Automobile Wrecking: The dismantling or disassembling of used motor vehicles or
trailers, or the storage, sale or dumping of dismantled, partially dismantled, obsolete, or
wrecked vehicles or their parts.
Base Flood: The flood having a one (1) percent chance of being equaled or exceeded in
any given year.
Basement: That portion of a building which is partly or wholly below grade, but so
located that the vertical distance from the average grade to the floor is greater than the
vertical distance from the average grade to the ceiling. A basement shall not be counted
as a story (see Figure 2-1).
Bed & Breakfast Facilities: A use which is subordinate to the principal use of a dwelling
unit as a single-family dwelling unit in which transient guests are provided a sleeping
room and board in return for payment and which does not provide separate cooking
facilities to such guests. Tourist Homes and Bed & Breakfast Facilities are identical for
the purposes of this ordinance.
Bedroom: A room used exclusively for sleeping.
Berm: A mound of earth graded, shaped and improved with landscaping in such a
fashion as to be used for visual and/or audible screening purposes to provide a transition
between uses of differing intensity.
Block: The property abutting one (1) side of a street and lying between the two (2)
nearest intersecting streets (crossing or terminating), or between the nearest such street
and railroad right-of-way, unsubdivided acreage, lake, river, or stream or corporate
boundary lines of the Municipality.
Board of Appeals: The Zoning Board of Appeals of the City of Muskegon (as provided
for in this Ordinance).
Buffer Zone: A strip of land reserved for plant material, berms, walls, or fencing to serve
as a visual and/or sound barrier between properties, often between abutting properties and
properties in different zoning districts. Landscaping, berms, fencing or open space can
also be used to buffer noise, light and related impacts from abutting properties.
Building: Any structure, either temporary or permanent, having a roof supported by
columns, walls, or any other supports, which is used for the purpose of housing,
sheltering, storing, or enclosing persons, animals, or personal property, or carrying on
business activities. This definition includes but is not limited to: mobile homes, sheds,
garages, greenhouses, and other principal or accessory structures.
Building Lines: A line which defines the minimum distance (as determined by the
minimum front, side, or rear setback) which any building shall be located from a property
line, existing street right-of-way line, or ordinary high water mark. [amended 10/02]
Building Official: Any individual established by the City of Muskegon to administer and
enforce the provisions of all building codes as adopted and amended.
Building Permit: A permit issued by the city signifying that a proposed repair,
reconstruction, or construction complies with the construction codes of the city and other
ordinances.
Building, Principal: A building in which is conducted the main or principal use of the lot
on which it is located.
Building Wrap A large "banner-type" display typically composed of pictorial and text
elements which is constructed of reinforced vinyl or porous mesh-like material and is
temporarily attached to one or more exterior walls of a building.
Cabaret: Any place which features topless dancers, go-go dancers, exotic dancers,
strippers, male or female impersonators, singers, comics, or similar entertainers.
Caliper: The diameter of a tree trunk four feet ( 4') from the ground.
Campus: The grounds of a school, college, university, hospital, or governmental entity,
when said grounds contain more than one principal building and drive entrances (or
access) onto more than one road. [amended 2/03]
Carport: A partially open structure of any construction type (including temporary
carports), intended to shelter one or more vehicles. Such structures shall comply with all
setback requirements applicable to garages. [amended 10/02]
Cellar: See definition of Basement.
Cemetery: Property, including crematories, mausoleums, and/or columbariums, used or
intended to be used solely for the perpetual interment of deceased human beings or
customary household pets.
Certificate of Compliance: See certificate of occupancy.
Certificate of Occupancy: A document signed by the Building Inspector as a condition
precedent to the commencement of a use after the construction/reconstruction of a
structure or building which acknowledges that such use, structure or building complies
with the provisions of this Ordinance.
Change of Use: A use of a building, structure or parcel of land, or portion thereof which
is different from the previous use in the way it is classified in this Ordinance or in the
Building Code, as amended.
Child Care Center or Day Care Center: A facility other than a private residence,
receiving 1 or more minor children for care for periods of less than 24 hours a day, and
where the parents or guardians are not immediately available to the child. Child care
center or day care center does not include a facility that provides care for less than 2
consecutive weeks, regardless of the number of hours or care per day. The facility is
generally described as child care center, day care center, day nursery, nursery school,
parent cooperative pre-school, play group, or drop-in center. Child care center or day care
center does not include a Sunday school conducted by a religious organization where
children are cared for during short periods of time while persons responsible for such
services are attending religious activities. [amended 8/97]
Child Day Care (Home): As defined in PA 116 of 1973, MCL 722.111, or successor
amendments or acts, means a private home in which more than 6 but not more than 12
minor children are given care and supervision for periods of less than 24 hours a day
unattended by a parent or legal guardian, except children related to an adult member of
the family by blood, marriage, or adoption. Group day care home includes a home that
gives care to an unrelated minor child for more than 4 weeks during a calendar year.
Church: A building wherein persons regularly assemble for religious worship and which
is maintained and controlled by a religious body organized to sustain public worship,
together with all accessory buildings and uses customarily associated with such primary
purpose. Includes synagogue, temple, mosque, or other such place for worship and
religious activities.
City Commission: The governing body of the city as provided in Chapter IV of the City
of Muskegon Charter.
Clearing (Land): The removal of vegetation from any site, parcel or lot except when land
is cleared and cultivated for bona fide agricultural or garden use in a district permitting
such use. Mowing, trimming, pruning or removal of vegetation to maintain it in a healthy,
viable condition is not considered clearing.
Clinic: An establishment where human patients who are not lodged over night are
admitted for examination and treatment by a group of physicians, dentists, other health
care professionals, or similar professions.
Club: An organization of persons for special purposes or for the promulgation of sports,
arts, sciences, literature, hobbies, politics, or the like, but not operated for profit.
Cluster Subdivision (PUD): A subdivision in which the lot sizes are reduced below those
normally required in the zoning district in which the development is located in return for
the provision of permanent open space.
Colocation: The use of a wireless telecommunication support facilities by more than one
wireless telecommunication provider. [amended 12/97]
Condominium Project: Means a plan or project consisting of not less than two (2)
condominium units if established and approved in conformance with the Condominium
Act (Act 59, 1978), as amended or a successor act.
Condominium Project (Subdivision): A division of land on the basis of condominium
ownership, which is not subject to the provisions of the Subdivision Control Act of 1967,
Public Act 288 of 1967, as amended, or successor act. Any "condominium unit", or
portion thereof, consisting of vacant land shall be equivalent to the term "lot" for the
purposes of determining compliance of a condominium subdivision with the provisions
of this ordinance pertaining to minimum lot size, minimum lot width, maximum lot
coverage and maximum floor area ratio.
Condominium Subdivision Plan: The drawings attached to the master deed for a
condominium subdivision project which describe the size, location, area, horizontal and
vertical boundaries and volume of each condominium unit contained in the condominium
subdivision project, as well as the nature, location and size of common elements.
Condominium Unit: Is defined as that portion of a condominium project or
condominium subdivision project which is designed and intended for separate ownership
and use, as described in the master deed, regardless of whether it is intended for
residential, office, industrial, business, recreational use as a time-share unit, or any other
type of use. A condominium unit may consist of either vacant land or space which either
encloses or is enclosed by a building structure.
Any "condominium unit" consisting of vacant land shall be equivalent to the term "lot"
for the purposes of determining compliance of a condominium subdivision project with
the provisions of this ordinance pertaining to minimum lot size, minimum lot width,
maximum lot coverage and maximum floor area ratio.
Condominium Documents: The master deed, recorded pursuant to the Condominium
Act, P.A. 59 of 1978 as amended, and any other instrument referred to in the master deed
or bylaws which affects the rights and obligations of a co-owner of the condominium.
Conservation Easement: A nonpossessory interest in real property imposing limitations
or affirmative obligations, the purposes of which include retaining or protecting natural,
scenic or open space values of real property; assuring its availability for agricultural,
forest, recreational or open space use; protecting natural resources; or maintaining air or
water quality.
Convalescent Home: An installation other than a hospital where two (2) or more persons
afflicted with illness, injury or an infirmity are housed or lodged, and furnished with
nursing care. [amended 11/03]
Correction Facility: A jail, prison, lock-up, or other building for the incarceration and
residence of prisoners, offenders, persons arrested or persons committed by a court or
other lawful authority.
Correctional Facility, Secured: A correctional facility which is constructed, altered or
designed to prevent an inmate or resident from leaving at any time except under the
authority of the committing court or authority.
Correctional Facility, Non-Secure: A correctional facility which is constructed, altered
or designed to provide supervised residence and coming in and leaving at scheduled or
supervised times or under supervised circumstances, of persons who are committed or
assigned to the facility by a court or other lawful authority, such as a parole or probation
department.
Craft Shop: Any business establishment which produces articles for sale on the premises
of artistic quality or effect, or handmade workmanship. Examples include candle
making, glass blowing, weaving, pottery making, woodworking, sculpting, painting, and
other associated activities.
dBA: A measurement for sound pressure or the relative loudness of sound in decibels as
measured on a sound level meter using the A- weighting network. A decibel (dB) is a
unit for measuring the volume of a sound equal to twenty (20) times the logarithm to the
base ten (10) of the ratio of the pressure of the sound measured to the reference pressure,
which is twenty (20) micropascals (20) micronewtons per square meter. All sound
measurements shall be made on a sound level meter which meets American National
Standards Institute (ANSI) specifications S1.4-1983; S1.4A-1985 or successor documents
for type I or type II equipment. The sound level meter must include a peak/hold circuit
when measuring impulsive sound.
Deck: A floored structure that adjoins a house.
Development: The construction of a new building or other structures on a zoning lot, the
relocation of an existing building on another zoning lot, or the use of open land for a new
use. Development also means any man-made change to improved or unimproved real
estate, including but not limited to parking, fences, pools, signs, temporary uses, clearing
of land, mining, dredging, filling, grading, paving, excavation, or drilling operations.
Development Permit: A permit signifying compliance with the provisions of this
Ordinance as to design, use, activity, height, setbacks, density, site planning, special use
status, and/or planned unit development status.
Deed Restriction: A restriction on the use of a lot or parcel of land that is set forth in the
deed and recorded with the County Register of Deeds. It is binding on subsequent owners
and is sometimes also known as a restrictive covenant.
Density: The number of dwelling units situated on or to be developed on a net acre (or
smaller unit) of land, which shall be calculated by taking the total gross acreage and
subtracting surface water, undevelopable lands (e.g., wetlands) and the area in rights-of-
way for streets and roads (See Figure 2-6).
District: A portion of the incorporated area of the City within which certain regulations
and requirements or various combinations thereof apply under the provisions of this
Ordinance.
Drive-In: A business establishment so developed that its retail or service character is
dependent on providing a driveway approach or parking spaces for motor vehicles so as
to serve patrons while in the motor vehicle rather than within a building or structure.
Driveway: A means of access for vehicles from a street or approved alley across a lot or
parcel to a parking or loading area, garage, dwelling or other structure or area on the
same lot, that is located and constructed in accordance with the requirements of this
Ordinance and any requirements of the City or State of Michigan.
Dry Cleaning Plant: A building, portion of a building, or premises used or intended to be
used for cleaning fabrics, textiles, wearing apparel, or articles of any sort by immersion
and agitation, or by immersions only, in volatile solvents including, but not by way of
limitation, solvents of the petroleum distillate type, and/or the chlorinated hydrocarbon
type, and the processes incidental thereto.
Dwelling Unit: A building, or structure of portion thereof, designed for occupancy by
one (1) family for residential purposes as a single housekeeping unit. In no case shall a
motor home, trailer coach, automobile chassis, tent or portable building be considered a
dwelling.
Dwelling, One Family: A building designed exclusively for and occupied exclusively by
one (1) family.
Dwelling, Two Family: A building designed exclusively for occupancy by two (2)
families living independently of each other.
Dwelling, Multiple Family: A building, or portion thereof, designed exclusively for
occupancy by three (3) or more families living independently of each other.
ECHO Housing Unit: A single, complete, self contained living unit created within an
existing single family dwelling. It has its own kitchen, bath, living area, sleeping area,
usually a separate entrance and is intended to provide accommodations for up to two (2)
family members, as defined in the ordinance, of the family occupying the dwelling.
Easement: A right, distinct from the ownership of the land, to cross property with
facilities such as, but not limited to, driveways, roads, utility corridors, sewer lines, water
lines, and transmission lines, or the right, distinct from the ownership of the land, to
reserve and hold an area for open space, recreation, drainage or access purposes.
Erected: Built, constructed, altered, reconstructed, moved upon, or any physical
operations on the premises which are required for construction excavation, fill, drainage,
and the like, shall be considered a part of erection.
Essential Services: The erection, construction, alteration, or maintenance by public
utilities or municipal departments of underground, surface, or overhead gas, electrical,
steam, fuel, or water transmission or distribution system, collection, public
communication, supply or disposal systems, including, poles, wires, mains, drains,
sewers, pipes, conduits, cables, fire alarm and police call boxes, traffic signals, hydrants
and similar equipment in connection herewith, including buildings which are necessary
for the furnishing of adequate service by such utilities or municipal departments for the
general health, safety, or welfare.
Excavation: Any breaking of ground, except common household gardening and ground
care.
Family: means one of the following:
Family, Domestic: One or more persons living together and related by the bonds
of blood, marriage, guardianship, foster relation, or adoption, and not more than
two additional unrelated persons, with all such individuals being domiciled
together as a single, domestic, housekeeping unit in the dwelling.
Functional Family: The following persons shall be considered a functional
family: Persons living together in a dwelling unit whose relationship is of a
permanent and distinct character and is the functional equivalent of a domestic
family, with a demonstrable and recognizable bond which constitutes the
functional equivalent of the bonds which render the domestic family a cohesive
unit. All persons of the functional family must be cooking and otherwise
housekeeping as a single, nonprofit unit. At least one person in the functional
family must be the record or equitable owner of the property or dwelling unit, or
the primary tenant under a written lease having a least one year's duration. This
definition shall not include any society, club, fraternity, sorority, association,
lodge, coterie, organization, rooming house, rooming units, or group where the
common living arrangement and/or the basis for the establishment of the
functional equivalency of the domestic family is likely or contemplated to exist
for a limited or temporary duration. The definition of functional family shall not
include a living arrangement where there exists less than 225 square feet of living
space in the dwelling unit per person residing therein, or insufficient off-street
parking located entirely on the property for all vehicles used by the said residents.
Applicability: Living arrangements which would otherwise comply with the
description of a family shall not constitute a family if the said arrangements have
occurred as a result of commercial or other advertising, or the offering of rooms
for rent. Any financial arrangement, except a true sharing of the expenses of all
the facilities in the single household unit shall be presumed to constitute renting a
room or rooms, and to have resulted from the offering of rooms for rent or
commercial or other advertising. Where rooms have been rented, or persons live
in the house in response to commercial advertising or the offering of rooms for
rent, the living arrangement shall be presumed to constitute a rooming house and
not a family. A person claiming the status of family shall have the burden of
proof of each of the elements set forth in the relevant definitions of this ordinance.
Family Day Care Home: A private home in which 1 but fewer than 7 minor children are
received for care and supervision for periods of less than 24 hours a day, unattended by a
parent or legal guardian, except children related to an adult member of the family by
blood, marriage, guardianship or adoption. Family day care home does not include a
home that gives care to an unrelated minor child for less than 4 weeks during a calendar
year [amended 8/99].
Fence: An accessory structure artificially constructed as a barrier and made of wood,
metal, stone, brick, or any manufactured materials erected for the enclosure of yard areas.
Fence, Obscuring: A barrier of at least five (5) feet in height and located so as to serve as
a screen or barrier providing at least eighty (80) percent visual block.
Filling: Filling shall mean the depositing or dumping of any matter onto or into the
ground, except common household gardening and general ground care.
Flood or Flooding: A general and temporary complete inundation of normally dry land
area from:
1. The overflow of inland or tidal waters.
2. The unusual and rapid accumulation or runoff of surface waters from any
source.
Flood Hazard Area: That area subject to flooding, on the average of at least once in
every hundred years as established by the Federal Emergency Management Agency.
Flood Hazard Boundary Map (FHBM): An official map of the community, issued by the
Federal Insurance Administration, where the boundaries of the areas of special flood
hazards have been designated as Zone A.
Flood Insurance Rate Map (FIRM): An official map of the community, on which the
Federal Insurance Administration has delineated both the areas of special flood hazards
and the risk premium zones applicable to the community.
Flood Insurance Study: The official report provided by the Federal Insurance
Administration. The report contains flood profiles, as well as the flood hazard boundary-
floodway map and the water surface elevation of the base flood.
Floor Area, Residential: The area in a dwelling unit included in the determination of
occupancy restrictions. It includes the sum of floor areas of bedrooms, and common
living areas. The floor area of storage areas and closet, basements without a second
egress, attached garages, breezeways, and enclosed and unenclosed porches shall be
excluded.
Floor Area, Usable (for the purpose of computing parking): That area used for or
intended to be used for the sale of merchandise or services, or for use to serve patrons,
clients, or customers. Such floor area which is used or intended to be used principally for
the storage or processing of merchandise, hallways, or for utilities or sanitary facilities,
shall be excluded from this computation of "Usable Floor Area". Measurement of usable
floor area shall be the product of the horizontal areas of the several floors of the building,
measured from the interior faces of the exterior walls.
Footing: That portion of the foundation of a structure which spreads and transmits loads
directly to the soil or the pilings.
Foster Care Facilities - Adult: [per State Law] [amended 11/02]
Adult Foster Care Facility: A governmental or nongovernmental establishment
that provides foster care to adults, subject to the Michigan Foster Care Facility
Licensing Act, Act 218 of 1979.
Adult Foster Care Family Home: A private residence with the approved capacity
to receive six (6) or fewer adults to be provided with foster care five (5) or more
days a week and for two (2) or more consecutive weeks. The adult foster care
family home licensee shall be a member of the household, and an occupant of the
residence.
Adult Foster Care Small Group Home: An adult foster care facility with the
approved capacity to receive twelve (12) or fewer adults to be provided with
foster care.
Adult Foster Care Large Group Home: An adult foster care facility with the
approved capacity to receive at least thirteen (13) but not more than twenty (20)
adults to be provided with foster care.
Adult Foster Care Congregate Facility: An adult foster care facility with the
approved capacity to receive more than twenty (20) adults to be provided with
foster care.
Foster Care Facilities - Family: [amended 11/02]
Foster Family Home: A private home in which 1 but not more than 4 minor
children, who are not related to an adult member of the household by blood,
marriage, guardianship or adoption, are given care and supervision for 24 hours a
day, or 4 or more days a week, of 2 or more consecutive weeks, unattended by a
parent or legal guardian.
Foster Family Group Home: A private home in which more than 4 but fewer than
7 minor children, who are not related to an adult member of the household by
blood, marriage, guardianship or adoption, are provided care for 24 hours a day,
for 4 or more days a week, for 2 or more consecutive weeks, unattended by a
parent or legal guardian.
Adult Foster Family Home: Any facility licensed by the State to provide foster
care.
Fraternity House or Sorority House: A dwelling maintained exclusively for members
affiliated with an academic or professional college or university, or any other recognized
institution of higher learning.
Freight Transportation: Establishments primarily engaged in the transportation of freight
as defined by standard industrial codes 4424 and 4432. [amended 4/00]
Garage, Private: An accessory building or portion of a main building designed or used
solely for the storage of motor driven vehicles, boats, and similar vehicles owned and
used by the occupants of the building to which it is accessory.
Garage, Service: Any premises used for the storage or care of motor-driven vehicles, or
where any such vehicles are equipped for operation, repaired, or kept for remuneration,
hire or sale.
Gasoline, Service Station (Automobile Service Station): A place for the dispensing, sale,
or offering for sale of motor fuels directly to users of motor vehicles together with the
sale of minor accessories and services for motor vehicles, but not including major
automobile repair.
Golf Course/Country Club: Any golf course, public or private, where the game of golf is
played, including accessory uses and buildings customary thereto, but excluding golf
driving ranges as a principal use.
Grade: The ground elevation established for the purpose of regulating the number of
stories and the height of buildings. The building grade shall be the level of the ground
adjacent to the walls of the building if the finished grade is level. If the ground is not
entirely level, the grade shall be determined by averaging the elevation of the ground for
each face of the building (see Figure 2-3).
Greenbelt: A strip of land of definite width and location reserved for the planting of
shrubs, trees, or plants to serve as an obscuring screen or buffer strip in carrying out the
requirements of this Ordinance.
Group Day Care Home: A private home in which more than 6 but not more than 12
minor children are given care and supervision for periods of less than 24 hours a day
unattended by a parent or legal guardian, except children related to an adult member of
the family by blood, marriage, guardianship or adoption. Group day care home does not
include a home that gives care to an unrelated minor child for less than 4 weeks during a
calendar year [amended 8/99].
Gun Club: Any organization whether operated for profit or not, and whether public or
private, which caters to or allows the use of firearms.
Height: In the case of a principal building, the vertical distance measured from the
average finished grade to the highest point of the roof surface where the building line
abuts the front yard, except as follows: to the deck line of mansard roofs, and the average
height between eaves and the ridge of gable, hip, and gambrel roofs (see Figure 2-2). The
measurement of height of an accessory building or structure shall be determined as the
vertical distance from the average finished grade to the midpoint of the roof surface.
Home Occupation: An occupation or profession carried on by an occupant of a dwelling
unit as a secondary use which is clearly subservient to the use of the dwelling for
residential purposes.
Hospice Care: The combination of active and compassionate therapies intended to
comfort and support terminally ill patients (and their families) at the end of a person's
life. [amended 11/03]
Hospice Care Facility: A physical structure operated for the purpose of providing more
than one hospice patients with hospice care. [amended 11/03]
Hospital: A building, structure or installation in which mentally ill, or sick or injured
persons are given medical or surgical treatment and operating under license by the Health
Department and the State of Michigan, including such related facilities as laboratories,
out-patient departments, central service facilities, and staff offices.
Hotel: A building or part of a building, with a common entrance or entrances, in which
lodging is provided and offered to the public for compensation and which is open to
transient guests (as distinguished from a boarding house or lodging house, apartment
hotel, fraternity or sorority house), and in which one or more of the following services are
offered:
1. Maid service.
2. Furnishing of linen.
3. Telephone, secretarial, or desk service.
4. Room service.
A restaurant or cocktail lounge, public banquet halls, ballrooms, or meeting rooms may
be located in the same building as a hotel.[amended 9/05]
Housekeeping unit: A dwelling unit which provides common living quarters including
cooking, eating, sanitation facilities, living areas and separate bedrooms.
Junk: For the purpose of this Ordinance the term junk shall mean any motor vehicles,
machinery, appliances, products, or merchandise with parts missing or scrap metals or
other trash, solid waste, refuse or scrap materials that are damaged or deteriorated, except
if in a completely enclosed building. It includes any inoperable or abandoned motor
vehicle which is not licensed for use upon the highways of the State of Michigan for a
period in excess of thirty (30) days and shall also include whether so licensed or not, any
motor vehicle which is inoperative for any reason for a period in excess of thirty (30)
days and which is not in a completely enclosed building.
Junk Yard (Salvage Yard): An open area where salvage, used or second hand material, is
bought and sold, exchanged, stored, baled, packed, dissembled, or handled, including but
not limited to scrap iron and other metals, paper, rags, rubber tires, and bottles. A "junk
yard" includes automobile wrecking yards and includes any area of more than two
hundred (200) square feet for storage, keeping or abandonment of junk but does not
include uses established entirely within enclosed buildings.
Kennel, Commercial: Any premises on which more than three dogs or more than four
cats, older than four (4) months old, are kept or any premises which offers cats or dogs
for sale on a reoccurring basis (more than once per year). [amended 11/03]
Landfill: Any disposal area or tract of land, unit or appurtenance or combination thereof
that is used to collect, store, handle, dispose of, bury, cover over, or otherwise accept or
retain solid waste as herein defined.
Lattice Tower: A support structure constructed of vertical metal struts and cross
braces, forming a triangular or square structure which often tapers from the
foundation to the top.
Lightering: A barge used to load or unload ships anchored in a harbor. [amended 4/00]
Livestock: Horses, cattle, sheep, goats, and other useful animals normally kept or raised
on a farm or range.
Loading Space: A minimum ten by fifty foot (10' x 50') off-street space on the same lot
with a building, or group of buildings, for the temporary parking of a commercial vehicle
while loading and unloading merchandise or materials. [amended 11/03]
Lot Coverage: The part or percent of the lot occupied by buildings and structures
including accessory buildings or structures.
Lot: Land described in a recorded plat or condominium unit in or condominium project,
occupied or to be occupied by a building, structure, land use or group of buildings having
sufficient size to comply with the frontage, area, width-to-depth ratio, setbacks, yards,
coverage and buildable area requirements of this Ordinance, and having its principal
frontage upon a public street or on a private road approved by the City (see Figure 2-6).
Lot Area, Gross: The area contained within the lot lines or property boundary
including street right-of-way, floodplains, wetlands, and waterbodies (see Figure
2-6).
Lot Area, Net: The total area of a horizontal plane within the lot lines of a lot,
exclusive of street right-of-way, floodplains, wetlands, waterbodies, any public
street right-of-way or access easement abutting any side of the lot (see Figure 2-
6).
Lot, Corner: A lot which has at least two contiguous sides abutting upon a public
street for their full length (see Figure 2-9).
Lot, Depth of: The average distance from the front lot line (i.e., road frontage) of
the lot to its opposite rear lot line measured in the general direction of the side
lines of the lot (see Figure 2-5).
Lot, Flag: A lot whose access to the public street is by a narrow, private right-of-
way that is either a part of the lot or an easement across another property and does
not meet the frontage requirements of the district in which it is located (see Figure
2-7).
Lot Frontage: The unbroken length of the front lot line which is contiguous to a
public street or private road.
Lot, Interior: A lot other than a corner lot which, with the exception of a "through
lot", has only one lot line fronting on a street (see Figure 2-7).
Lot Lines: The lines bounding a lot or parcel (see Figure 2-7). [amended 10/02]
Lot Line, Front: The line(s) separating the lot from any street right-of-
way, private road or other access easement. Such line shall be continuous
at least a sufficient length to conform with the minimum lot width
requirement of the district.
Front Lot Line, Principal: For a corner lot, the front lot line
adjacent to the street which the front door of the home faces (or is
proposed to face).
Front Lot Line, Secondary: For a corner lot, the front lot line
which is not considered to be the principal front lot line.
Lot Line, Rear: The lot line opposite and most distant from the front lot
line. In the case of a triangular or otherwise irregularly shaped lot or
parcel, an imaginary line at least ten (10) feet in length entirely within the
lot or parcel, parallel to and at a maximum distance from the front lot line.
In the case of a corner lot, the lot line opposite the principal front lot line.
Lot Line, Side: Any lot line other than a front or rear lot line.
Lot of Record: A parcel of land, the dimensions of which are shown on a document or
map on file with the County Register of Deeds or in common use by city officials, and
which has not been combined in use with another parcel or lot, which lawfully existed
prior to the enactment of this or a zoning ordinance previously in effect .
Lot, Through: An interior lot having frontage on two (2) more or less parallel streets (see
Figure 2-4).
Lot Width: The horizontal distance between the side lot lines, measured at the two points
where the building line, or setback line, intersects the side lot lines.
Marina: A boat basin which contains docks, boat sales, on shore storage, repair facilities,
and stores intended for sale primarily for the use of the marina patrons.
Marine Cargo Handling: Establishments primarily engaged in activities directly related
to marine cargo handling from the time cargo, for or from a vessel, arrives at shipside,
dock, pier, terminal, staging area, or in transit area until cargo loading or unloading
operations are completed. [amended 4/00]
Master Deed: The document recorded as part of a condominium subdivision to which are
attached as exhibits and incorporated by reference the approved bylaws for the
condominium subdivision and the condominium subdivision plan and all other
documents required by law to be attached or incorporated.
Master Land Use Plan: The statement of policy by the City Planning Commission
relative to the agreed upon and officially adopted guidelines for a desirable physical
pattern for future community development. The plan consists of a series of maps, charts
and written material representing in summary form the soundest concept for community
growth to occur in an orderly, attractive, economical and efficient manner creating
desirable community living conditions.
Mezzanine: An intermediate floor in any story occupying not more than one-third (1/3)
of the floor area of such story.
Mini Storage (Warehouse) Facilities: A building or group of buildings in a controlled
access or fenced area that contains varying sizes of individual compartmentalized and
controlled access stalls or lockers for the storage of customer's goods or wares which are
not used on a daily basis.
Mobile Home: A structure, transportable in one or more sections, which is built on a
chassis and designed to be used as a dwelling with or without permanent foundation,
when connected to the required utilities, and includes the plumbing, heating, air-
conditioning, and electrical systems contained in the structure. The term mobile home
shall not include pick-up campers, travel trailers, motor homes, modular homes,
recreational vehicles, converted buses, tent trailers, or other transportable structures
designed for temporary use.
Mobile Home Park: A parcel or tract of land under the control of a person upon which 3
or more mobile homes are located on a continual, nontransient basis and which is offered
to the public for that purpose regardless of whether a charge is made therefor, together
with any building, structure, enclosure, street, equipment, or facility used or intended for
use incident to the occupancy of a mobile home.
Modular (Pre-Manufactured) Housing Unit: A dwelling unit constructed solely within a
factory, as a single unit, or in various sized modules or components, which are then
transported to a site where they are assembled on a permanent foundation to form a
dwelling unit, and meeting all codes and regulations applicable to conventional single-
family home construction.
Monopole: A support structure constructed of a single, self-supporting hollow metal tube
securely anchored to a foundation.
Motel: A building or group of buildings, whether detached or in connecting units, which
shall provide for overnight or resort lodging and are offered to the public for
compensation, and shall cater primarily to the public traveling by motor vehicle. The
term motel shall include buildings designated as hotels, auto courts, tourist courts, motor
courts, motor hotel, and similar appellations which are designed as integrated units of
individual rooms under common ownership. A motel shall not be considered or construed
to be a multiple family dwelling.
Municipal Sewage Treatment Facility: A sewage treatment system owned by a township,
charter township, village, city, county, the State of Michigan, or an authority or
commission comprised of such governmental units.
Municipal Water Supply: A water supply system owned by a township, charter
township, village, city, county, the State of Michigan, or an authority or commission
comprised of such governmental units.
Municipality: The City of Muskegon.
Natural Features: Natural features shall include soils, wetlands, woodlots, landmark and
specimen trees, overgrown fence rows, floodplains, water bodies, topography, vegetative
cover, and geologic formations.
New Construction: Structures or development for which the "start of construction"
commenced on or after the effective date of adoption of this Ordinance.
Nonconforming Structure: A structure or portion thereof lawfully existing at the
effective date of this Ordinance, or amendments thereto, and that does not conform to the
provisions of the Ordinance in the district in which it is located.
Nonconforming Use: A use which lawfully occupied a building or land at the effective
date of this Ordinance, or amendments thereto, and that does not conform to the use
regulations of the district in which it is located.
Nonconforming Lot of Record (Substandard Lot): A lot lawfully existing at the effective
date of this zoning ordinance or a successor or amending ordinance, or affecting
amendment, and which fails to meet the area and/or dimensional requirements of the
zoning district in which it is located.
Nursery, Plant Materials: A space, building or structure, or combination thereof, for the
storage of live trees, shrubs, or plants offered for retail sale on the premises including
products used for gardening or landscaping. The definition of nursery within the
meaning of this Ordinance does not include any space, building, or structure used for the
sale of fruits, vegetables, or Christmas trees.
Nursing Home: See Convalescent Home. [amended 11/03]
Occupied: The word "occupied" includes arranged, designed, built, altered, converted to,
rented, leased, or intended to be occupied.
Open Front Store: A business establishment so developed that service to the patron may
be extended beyond the walls of the structure, not requiring the patron to enter the
structure. The term "Open Front Store" shall not include automobile repair stations or
automobile service stations.
Open Space, Common: Open space which is held for the collective use and enjoyment of
the owners, tenants, or occupants of a single development.
Open Space Development: A type of residential development option permitted in this
Ordinance, and administered as a planned unit development, which is based upon a
portion of a parcel set aside as permanent open space with the balance of the parcel used
at higher densities than would otherwise be permitted without the open space. See also
"clustered subdivision".
Open Space, Dedicated: Common open space dedicated as a permanent recorded
easement.
Open Space, Usable: That portion of the common open space which due to its slope,
drainage characteristics and soil conditions can be used for active recreation.
Ordinary High Water Mark: The line between upland and bottomland which persists
through successive changes in water levels below which the presence and action of the
water is so common or recurrent that the character of the land is marked distinctly from
the upland and is apparent in the soil itself, the configuration of the surface of the soil,
and the vegetation.
Owner: The owner of the premises or lesser estate in the premises, a mortgagee or
vendee in possession, an assignee of rents, receiver, executor, trustee, leasee, or any other
person, sole proprietorship, partnership, association, or corporation directly or indirectly
in control of a building, structure, or real property, or his or her duly authorized agent.
Park: A parcel of land, building or structure used for recreational purposes including but
not limited to playgrounds, sport fields, game courts, beaches, trails, picnicking areas,
and leisure time activities.
Parking Area, Off-Street: A land surface or facility providing vehicular parking spaces
off of a street along with adequate drives and aisles for maneuvering so as to provide
access for entrance and exit for the parking of three (3) or more automobiles or trucks.
Parking Space: A minimum eight by eighteen foot (8' x18') area of land provided for
vehicles off of a street exclusive of drives, aisles, or entrances giving access thereto,
which is fully accessible for parking of permitted vehicles. [amended 11/03]
Patio: An uncovered, paved outside area used for several purposes including leisure,
social gatherings, etc. Patios may be attached to a home or a separate area; they may
be made from concrete, paving bricks or created from other similar products.
Planning Commission: The Planning Commission of the City of Muskegon as provided
in Act 285 of 1931, as amended, and appointed pursuant to the City Code of Ordinances.
Planned Unit Development: A tract of land or lot, developed under single ownership or
management as a separate neighborhood or community unit. The development shall be
based on an approved site plan which allows flexibility of design not available under
normal zoning district requirements. The plan may contain a mixture of housing types,
commercial and industrial uses, common open space and other land uses as provided in
this Ordinance.
Plat: A map of a subdivision of land recorded with the Register of Deeds pursuant to the
Subdivision Control Act of 1967 or a prior statute.
Porch: A covered entrance to a building, projecting from the wall.
Poultry: Domestic fowl such as chickens, turkeys, ducks, and geese.
Principal Building: The main building on a lot in which the principal use exists or is
served by.
Principal Use: The main use to which the premises are devoted and the main purpose for
which the premises exist.
Private Road: A private way or means of approach which meets the requirements of this
Ordinance to provide access to two (2) or more abutting lots, and which is constructed
and maintained by the owner or owners and is not dedicated for general public use.
Prohibited Use: A use of land which is not explicitly permitted within a particular zoning
district.
Public Water Course: A stream or creek which may or may not be serving as a drain as
defined by Act 40 of Public Acts of 1956, as amended, being Sections 280.1 to 280.623
of the Compiled Laws of 1948 or successor act: or any body of water which has definite
banks, a bed and visible evidence of a continued flow or occurrence of water.
Public Service: Public service facilities within the content of this Ordinance shall include
such uses and services as election polling places, pumping stations, fire halls, police
stations, public health activities, and similar uses including essential services.
Public Utility: A person, firm, or corporation, municipal department, board, or
commission duly authorized to furnish, and furnishing under Federal, State, County, or
Municipal regulations to the public: gas, steam, electricity, sewage, disposal,
communication, transportation, or water services.
Replacement Cost: Cost of replacing a structure or building at current costs at the time of
the loss, identical to the one that was destroyed, without application of depreciation.
Room: For the purpose of determining lot area requirements and density in a multiple-
family district, a room is a living room, dining room or bedroom, equal to at least eighty
(80) square feet in area.
Recreational Vehicle Park: All lands and structures which are owned and operated by
private individuals, a business or corporation which are predominantly intended to
accommodate recreational vehicles and provide for outdoor recreational activities.
Recreational Vehicle: A vehicle primarily designed and used as a temporary living
quarters for recreational, camping, or travel purposes, including a vehicle having its own
motor power or a vehicle mounted on or drawn by another vehicle (Act 96, Michigan
Public Acts of 1987, as amended or successor acts).
Repair: The reconstruction or renewal of any part of an existing building for the purpose
of maintenance.
Restoration: The reconstruction or replication of an existing building's original
architectural features.
Right-of-Way: A street, alley, or other thoroughfare or easement permanently
established for passage of persons, vehicles, or the location of utilities. The right-of-way
is delineated by legally established lines or boundaries.
Rooming House: A dwelling structure having single rooms for rent and having no
common areas except common places for the taking of meals, or baths, or laundry
facilities, and not defined as a tourist home, or state licensed residential facility.
Rubbish: See Solid Waste.
Scrap Metal Processor: Any person, firm, or corporation who, from a fixed location,
utilizes machinery and equipment for processing and manufacturing iron, steel, or non-
ferrous metallic scrap into prepared grades and whose principal product is scrap iron,
scrap steel, or non-ferrous metallic scrap for remelting purposes.
School: An educational institution under the sponsorship of a private or public agency
providing elementary or secondary curriculum, and accredited or licensed by the State of
Michigan; but excluding schools involving outside traffic or commercial activity.
Screen: A structure providing enclosure, such as a fence, and a visual barrier between the
area enclosed and the adjacent property. A screen may also be non-structured, consisting
of shrubs or other growing materials.
Secondary containment: A device and/or measures taken to prevent regulated substances
that can be spilled at a loading or unloading facility from entering a public sewer,
groundwater, surface water, subsurface soils or the impoundment area for the tanks.
Setback: The minimum unoccupied distance between the lot line and the principal and
accessory buildings, as required herein. [amended 10/02]
Setback, Front: Minimum unoccupied distance, extending the full lot width,
between the principal building and any lot line abutting a public street or private
road.
Setback, Rear: The minimum required unoccupied distance, extending the full lot
width, between the principal and/or accessory buildings and the lot line opposite
the front lot line, or in the case of a corner lot, the setback opposite the principal
front lot line.
Setback, Side: The minimum required unoccupied distance, extending from the
front setback to the rear setback, between the principal and accessory buildings
and the side lot line. In the case of a corner lot, the setback opposite the
secondary front lot line.
Sign: Sign shall mean and include every individual announcement, declaration,
demonstration, display, illustration, insignia, surface or space when erected or maintained
to the out of doors in view of the general public for identification, advertisement or
promotion of the interests of any person. This definition shall include billboard signs,
signs painted directly on walls of structures, and temporary signs.
1. Area: The total square footage of a sign face exposed to public view.
2. Awning Sign: A sign which is part of, hung from the underside of, or
attached to, a marquee, canopy, or other covered structure projecting from
and supported by a building and does not project horizontally beyond or
vertically above said marquee, canopy, or covered structure. (see Figure 2-
8).
3. Banner: An unsecure, sign made of natural, flexible, synthetic or plastic
material used to call attention to a land use or product, service or activity;
however, not including pennants or flag.
4. Billboard: A sign structure which exceeds one hundred (100) square feet
advertising a service, commodity or establishment, which is not sold,
produced, manufactured, or furnished at the property on which said sign is
located, also known as "off-premise sign" or "outdoor advertising
structure".
5. Bulletin Board: A sign which identifies an institution or organization on
the premises where it is located and which contains the name of the
institution or organization, the names of individuals connected with it, and
general announcements of events or activities occurring at the institution
or similar messages.
6. Directional: Signs limited to directional messages, principally for
pedestrian or vehicular traffic, such as "one way", "entrance" and "exit"
(see Figure 2-8).
7. Double-Face Sign: A sign, both sides of which are visible and used as
signs. A "V" type sign shall be considered a double-face sign provided the
least angle of intersection does not exceed ninety (90) degrees.
8. Electronic Message Board: A sign on which copy changes automatically
on a lampbank or through mechanical means, e.g., electrical or electronic
time and temperature units [amended 8/98].
9. Flag: A sign made of natural, synthetic or plastic material having a
distinctive size, color and design used as a symbol or emblem.
10. Flashing Sign: Any illuminated sign on which the artificial light is not
maintained stationary or constant in intensity or color at all times while in
use.
11. Free-Standing: Any non-movable sign not affixed to a building (see
Figure 2-8).
12. Height: The height of sign shall mean the maximum vertical distance
from the uppermost extremity of a sign or sign support to the average
ground level at the base of the sign.
13. Illuminated Sign: Any sign designed to give forth artificial light, or
designed to reflect any such light given from any source which is intended
to cause such light or reflection.
14. Informational Sign: A single or double-faced sign not exceeding six (6)
square feet in surface area, intended primarily for the convenience of the
public or to ensure the orderly operation of the site, including but not
limited to signs designating restrooms, address numbers, hours of
operations, public telephone, and instructions regarding parking. [amended
4/05]
15. Monument sign: A sign affixed to the ground with a full footing where
the display surface is less than two (2) feet above the grade to the bottom
of the display area (see Figure 2-8).
16. Name Plate: A two square foot sign located on premises, giving the name
or address, or both, of the owner or occupant of a building or premises.
17. Off-Premise Sign: A sign located on a different parcel of land or lot or
premise than where the business, product, service, event, or person or
subject is being advertised.
18. On-Premise: A sign located on the parcel of land or lot advertising a
business, product, service, event, person or subject being offered on said
parcel of land or lot.
19. Pennant: A small, often triangular, tapering flag used in multitudes as a
device to call attention to a land use or activity.
20. Pole Sign: An advertising structure which is supported by one or more
uprights in permanent footings with all parts of the display surface of the
sign eight (8) feet or more above the grade at the base of the sign (see
Figure 2-8).
21. Portable (Temporary): A sign which is not permanently affixed to a
building (wall sign), structure (pole sign) or the ground (monument sign).
Portable or temporary signs include without limitation signs supported on
wooden posts, mobile chassis, motor vehicle, banners, flags, and pennants.
22. Projecting (Braquet): A sign which is attached directly to and
perpendicular with a building wall and extends more than twelve (12)
inches from the face of said wall (See Figure 2-8).
23. Residential Entranceway Sign: A permanent structure including but not
limited to walls, columns and gates, marking entrances to single-family
subdivisions or multiple housing projects by name, symbol, or otherwise.
24. Real Estate Sign: A sign advertising that the premises on which it is
located is for sale, lease, or rent.
25. Roof: A sign which is erected, constructed and maintained upon or above
the roof, or parapet wall of a building which is wholly or partially
supported by said building (see Figure 2-8).
26. Setback: The minimum linear distance as measured from the road right-
of-way line to the nearest part of the sign or advertising structure.
27. Window: A sign that is applied or attached to the exterior or interior of a
window or located in such a manner within a building that it can be seen
from the exterior of the structure through a window (see Figure 2-8).
28. Wall: A sign fastened to or painted on the wall of a building or structure
in such a manner that the wall becomes the supporting structure for, or
forms the background surface of the sign and which does not project more
than twelve (12) inches from said building or structure (see Figure 2-8).
Sight Distance: The length of an unobstructed view from a particular access point to the
farthest visible point of reference on a street. Used in this ordinance as a reference for
unobstructed street visibility.
Solid Fuel Heating Appliance: Heating appliances that are intended to burn solid fuels,
such as wood, coal, or any other biomass fuel. Solid fuel Heating Appliance does not
include sold fuel fired cooking appliances. [amended 1/06]
Special Land Use: A use of land whose characteristics may create nuisance-like impacts
on adjoining lands unless carefully sited according to standards established in this
Ordinance. Approval for establishing a special land use is indicated by issuance of a
Special Use Permit.
Specified Anatomical Areas: For the purposes of this Ordinance shall be defined as
follows:
1. Less than completely and opaquely covered: (a) human genitals, pubic
region, (b) buttock, and (c) female breast below a point immediately
above the top of the areola.
2. Human male genitals in a discernibly turgid state, even if completely
opaquely covered.
Specified Sexual Activities: For the purposes of this Ordinance shall be defined a
follows:
1. Human genitals in a state of sexual stimulation or arousal.
2. Acts of human masturbation, sexual intercourse, or sodomy.
3. Fondling or other erotic touching or human genitals, pubic region, buttock,
or female breast.
Stable: A structure for the housing of domestic animals. For the purpose of determining
the permitted capacity of a stable, one (1) horse shall be considered the equivalent of one
(1) self-propelled vehicle.
Stevedore: One whose work is loading or unloading ships. [amended 4/00]
Site Plan: A plan showing all salient features of a proposed development, so that it may
be evaluated in order to determine whether it meets the provisions of this Ordinance. A
plot plan depicts a subset of the information required by this Ordinance for a site plan.
Solid Waste: Garbage, rubbish, paper, cardboard, metal containers, yard clippings, wood,
glass, bedding, crockery, demolished building materials, ashes, incinerator residue, street
cleanings, municipal and industrial sludges, and solid commercial and solid industrial
waste, animal waste, but does not include human body waste, liquid waste regulated by
statute, ferrous or nonferrous scrap immediately directed to a scrap metal processor or to
a reuser of ferrous or nonferrous products, and slag or slag products immediately directed
to a slag processor or to a reuser of slag or slag products.
Stop Work Order: An administrative order which is either posted on the property or
mailed to the property owner which directs a person not to continue, or not to allow the
continuation of an activity which is in violation of this Ordinance.
Storage Yard: Any exterior area used for the placement of any materials, products or
equipment. Parking areas as regulated by Section 2327 shall not be considered a storage
yard.
Story: That part of a building, except a mezzanine as defined herein, included between
the surface of one (1) floor and the surface of the next floor, or if there is no floor above,
then the ceiling next above. A story thus defined shall not be counted as a story when
more than fifty (50) percent, by cubic content, is below the level of the adjoining ground
(See Figure 2-1).
Story, Half: An uppermost story lying under a sloping roof having an area of at least two
hundred (200) square feet with a clear height of seven feet six inches (7' 6").
Street: A public dedicated right-of-way, other than an alley, which affords the principal
means of access to abutting property. [amended 11/03]
Expressway: Those streets designed for high speed, high volume traffic, with full
or partially controlled access, some grade crossings but no driveway connections
(U.S. 31).
Arterial Street: Those streets of considerable continuity which are used or
primarily for fast or heavy traffic (Seaway Dr., M-46, Shoreline Dr.).
Major Street: Those streets in the City that are classified as primary hard-
surfaced roads (Getty St., Laketon Ave., Henry St. (south of Laketon Ave.),
Sherman Blvd.)
Collector Street: Those streets used to carry traffic from minor streets to arterial
streets classified by the City (Hackley Ave., Barclay St., Lakeshore Dr. (south of
Laketon Ave.), Marquette Ave., Wood St.).
Minor Street: A street, which is intended primarily for access, for abutting
properties (All streets except those named above).
Structure: Anything constructed or erected, the use of which requires location on the
ground or attachment to something having location on the ground. Satellite dishes over
24 inches in diameter and antennas shall be considered as structures.
Structural Alterations: Any change in the supporting members of a building such as the
bearing walls, columns, beams or girders, or any change in the dimensions or
configuration of the roof, exterior walls or foundation.
Swimming Pool: Means any structure or container located either above or below grade
designed to hold water to a depth of greater than twenty-four (24) inches, intended for
swimming or bathing.
Tents: A portable shelter of canvas, course cloth, or similar material supported by one
(1) or more poles, but not including those used solely for children's recreational purposes
or noncommercial purposes.
Travel Trailer: See Recreational Vehicle.
Travel Trailer Park: See Recreational Vehicle Park.
Underground Storage Tank: A tank or combination of tanks, including underground
pipes connected to the tank or tanks or underground ancillary equipment containment
systems, if any, which is, was, or may have been, used to contain an accumulation of
regulated substances and the volume of which, including the volume of the underground
pipes connected to the tank or tanks is 10% or more beneath the surface of the ground.
Trailer (Utility): A vehicle that is not self propelled which is licensed by the State of
Michigan and used for transporting materials in tow with a motor vehicle.
Use: The purpose for which land or a building is arranged, designed or intended, or for
which land or a building is or may be occupied.
Utility Room: A room used primarily for storage, for housing a heating unit, or for
laundry purposes.
Variance, Use: A modification of the literal provisions of the zoning ordinance which is
authorized by the Zoning Board of Appeals when strict enforcement of the ordinance
would cause unnecessary hardship for the property owner due to circumstances unique to
the property. A use variance permits a use of land that is otherwise not allowed in that
district. [amended 11/00]
Variance, Nonuse or Dimensional: A modification of the literal provisions of the zoning
ordinance granted when strict enforcement of the zoning ordinance would cause practical
difficulty owing to circumstances unique to the individual property. The crucial points of
a nonuse or dimensional variance are practical difficulty and unique circumstances
applying to the property. A nonuse or dimensional variance is not justified unless both
elements are present in the case. [amended 11/00]
Walls, Obscuring: An obscuring barrier (not associated with a building) of definite
height and location constructed of wood, masonry, concrete, or similar material, and
which provides one hundred (100) percent opacity.
Wild Animal: Any living member of the animal kingdom, including those born or raised
in captivity, except the following:
1. Domestic dogs (excluding hybrids with wolves, coyotes, or jackals)
2. Domestic cats (excluding hybrids with ocelots or margays)
3. Ferrets
4. Rodents
5. Caged, nonvenomous snakes
6. Captive-bred species of common cage birds.
Wireless Communication Antenna (WCA): Any antenna used for the transmission or
reception of wireless communication signals excluding those used exclusively for
dispatch communications by public emergency agencies, amateur radio antennas, satellite
antennas, those which receive video programming services via multipoint distribution
services which are one meter (39 inches) or less in diameter and those which receive
television broadcast signals. [amended 12/97]
Wireless Communication Equipment Shelter: The structure, shelter, cabinet or vault in
which the electronic receiving and relay equipment necessary for processing wireless
telecommunications is housed together with necessary related equipment such as radios,
cable, conduit, connectors, air conditioning units and emergency generators. [amended
12/97]
Wireless Communication Facilities (WCF): All structures and accessory facilities
relating to the use of the radio frequency spectrum for the purpose of transmitting or
receiving radio signals and may include, but is not limited to radio towers, television
towers, telephone devices and exchanges, micro-wave towers, telephone transmission
equipment building and commercial mobile radio service facilities. Citizen band radio
facilities, short wave facilities, amateur radio facilities, and satellite dishes, and
governmental facilities which are subject to state or federal law or regulations which
preempt municipal regulatory authority are not included in this definition. [amended
12/97]
Wireless Communication Support Facilities (WCSF): A monopole, guyed, or lattice type
tower designed for the attachment of or as support for wireless communication antennas
or other antennas. [amended 12/97]
Yards: The open spaces on the same lot with a main building, unoccupied and
unobscured from the ground upward except as otherwise provided in this Ordinance, and
as defined herein. [amended 10/02]
Front Yard: An open unoccupied space extending the full width of the lot, the
depth of which is the horizontal distance between the front lot line and the nearest
point of the building. In the case of lots abutting lakes, rivers, and canals, the
front yard shall be that side of the lot or parcel on the street side.
Rear Yard: A space extending the full width of the lot the depth of which is the
horizontal distance between the rear lot line and the nearest point of the main
building.
Side Yard: An open space between a main building and the side lot line,
extending from the front yard to the rear yard, the width of which is the distance
from the nearest point of the main building.
Zoning Administrator: The person appointed by the City to administer and enforce the
provisions of this Ordinance.