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ARTICLE VII - RM-1 LOW DENSITY MULTIPLE-FAMILY RESIDENTIAL
DISTRICTS
PREAMBLE
The RM-1 Low Density Multiple Family Residential Districts are designed to provide sites for
multiple family dwelling structures, and related uses, which will generally serve as zones of
transition between the nonresidential districts and the lower density One Family and Two Family
Residential Districts, and MHP Mobile Home Park Districts.
SECTION 700: PRINCIPAL USES PERMITTED
In an RM-1 Low Density Multiple Family Residential District no building or land shall be used
and no building shall be erected, structurally altered, or occupied except for one (1) or more of
the following specified uses, unless otherwise provided for in this Ordinance:
1. All Principal Uses Permitted in the R One Family and RT Two Family Residential
Districts with the lot area, yard, and floor area requirements for one (1) and two (2)
family dwellings equal to at least the requirements of the immediately abutting residential
district.
2. Multiple dwellings and row houses for any number of families.
3. Accredited fraternity and sorority houses when located not less than twenty (20) feet
from any other lot in any residential district.
4. Bed & Breakfast facilities, under the following conditions: [amended 7/03]
a. The owner or operator of the tourist home shall live full-time on the premises.
b. No structural additions or enlargements shall be made to accommodate the tourist
home use and no exterior alterations to the structure shall be made which will
change the residential appearance of the structure.
c. Breakfast may be served on the premises, only for guests of the facility, and no
other meals shall be provided to guests.
d. No long-term rental of rooms for more than fourteen (14) consecutive days shall
be permitted. No guest may stay for more than twenty-eight (28) nights in any
given year.
e. There shall be a maximum of five (5) guestrooms. No more than two (2) adults
are permitted to stay in any guestroom.
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f. Signage shall conform to that which is permitted for home occupation businesses
only.
g. Rental of the tourist home for special gatherings such as wedding receptions and
parties shall be prohibited.
h. The property shall meet all local and state code requirements regarding bed and
breakfast facilities.
5. Rooming houses with a capacity of not more than three (3) roomers.
6. Churches and other facilities normally incidental hereto subject to the following
conditions:
a. The site shall be so located as to provide for ingress and egress from said site
directly onto a major or secondary thoroughfare.
b. The principal buildings on the site shall be set back from abutting properties
zoned for residential use not less than thirty (30) feet.
c. Buildings of greater than the maximum height allowed in Section 2100 may be
allowed provided front, side, and rear yards are increased above the minimum
requirements by one (1) foot for each foot of building that exceeds the maximum
height allowed.
7. Home occupations of a non-industrial nature may be permitted. Permissible home
occupations include, but are not limited to the following: [amended 11/02]
a. Art and craft studios, lessons may be given to one client at a time
b. Hair and nail salons, limited to one client at a time
c. Dressmaking and tailoring
d. Tutoring, limited to one student at a time
e. Typing or clerical services
f. Teaching of music or dancing or similar instruction, limited to one client
at a time
g. Offices located within the dwelling for a writer, consultant, member of the
clergy, lawyer, physician, architect, engineer or accountant, limited to one
client/family at a time.
h. All home occupations are subject to the following:
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i) The businessperson operating the home occupation shall reside in the dwelling
and only members of the immediate family residing on the premises may be
employed.
ii) The business shall have a local business license and any other appropriate
licensing or registrations required by local, state or federal law.
iii) No equipment or process shall be used in home occupations which creates noise,
vibration, glare, fumes, odor, or electrical interference detectable to the normal senses
of persons off the lot. In the case of electrical interference, no equipment or process
shall be used which creates visual or audible interference with any radio or television
receivers off the premises or causes fluctuations in the line voltage off the premises.
iv) Explosives, flammable liquids or combustible liquids shall only be used in
compliance with the applicable fire and building codes.
v) Activities involving kilns or welding equipment shall comply with the applicable
fire and building codes.
vi) The outside appearance of the premises shall have no visible evidence of the
conduct of a home occupation.
vii) Home occupations may not serve as headquarters or dispatch centers where
employees come to the site and are dispatched to other locations.
viii) All activity must be conducted within a preexisting structure. The home
occupation shall not require internal or external alterations or involve construction
features not customarily found in dwellings.
ix) There shall be no exterior display or signage other than that signage allowed for
home occupations under the sign requirements of this ordinance. [amended 11/00]
x) No goods shall be kept, or sold which are made or assembled off-site, except as
incidental to services rendered.
xi) The primary function of the premises shall be that of the residence of the family,
and the occupation shall not exceed twenty-five (25) percent of the principal building.
xii) There shall be no outside storage or processing.
xiii) The home occupation shall not involve the routine use of commercial vehicles for
delivery of materials to and from the premises. There shall be no commercial
vehicles associated with the home occupation, nor parking of more than one (1)
business car, pickup truck or small van on the premises.
xiv) Activities specifically prohibited (but not limited to) include:
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(1) A service or repair of motor vehicles, appliances and other large equipment
(2) A service or manufacturing process which would normally require industrial
zoning
(3) A commercial food service requiring a license
(4) A limousine service
(5) A lodging service including but not limited to, a tourist home, motel or hotel
(6) A tattoo parlor
(7) An animal hospital or kennel
(8) A lawn service
xv) No activity legally excluded by any deed restriction or other tenant or owner
restrictions shall be permitted.
8. Foster Care Small Group Homes. [amended 11/02]
9. Accessory buildings and accessory uses customarily incidental to the above Principal
Permitted Uses.
10. Uses similar to the above Principal Permitted Uses.
SECTION 701: SPECIAL LAND USES PERMITTED [amended 2/02] [amended 2/03]
The following uses, and their accessory buildings and accessory uses, shall be permitted under
the purview of Section 2332 after review and approval of the use (and a site plan, if required) by
the Planning Commission, after Public Hearing, subject to the applicable conditions, and any
other reasonable conditions imposed by the Planning Commission:
1. Offices and clinics of physicians, dentists, architects, engineers, attorneys, accountants,
real estate appraisers, or other professional persons; real estate, insurance, credit service
(other than loan) offices and similar businesses supplying services instead of products
when determined by the Planning Commission upon application to it, to be consistent
with the nature and condition of neighboring uses and structures.
2. Buildings to be used exclusively to house the offices of civic, religious or charitable
organizations, the activities of which are conducted by mail, and which are not displaying
or handling merchandise or rendering service on the premises.
3. Schools and colleges not involving the use of mechanical equipment except such as is
customarily found in dwellings or professional offices provided that any such building
shall be located not less than thirty (30) feet from any other lot in any residential district.
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4. Adult Foster Care Large Group Homes, provided that such facility shall be at least one
thousand five hundred (1,500) feet from any other similar facility. [amended 11/02]
5. Previously existing or established commercial uses not already converted to a residential
use may be authorized under Special Use Permit for the following [amended 12/99]:
a. Retail and/or service establishments meeting the intent of the neighborhood
Limited Business Zone (B-1) dealing directly with consumers including:
1) Any generally recognized retail business which supplies new commodities
on the premises for persons residing in adjacent residential areas such as:
groceries, meats, dairy products, baked goods or other foods, drugs,
drygoods, and notions or hardware.
2) Any personal service establishment which performs services on the
premises for persons residing in adjacent residential areas, such as: shoe
repair, drop-off dry cleaning shops, tailor shops, beauty parlors, barber
shops, dressmaker, tailor, pharmacist, or an establishment doing radio,
television, or home appliance repair, and similar establishments that
require a retail character no more objectionable than the aforementioned,
subject to the provision that no more than five (5) persons shall be
employed at any time in the sale, repair, or other processing of goods.
3) Professional offices of doctors, lawyers, dentists, chiropractors,
osteopaths, architects, engineers, accountants, and similar or allied
professions.
4) Restaurants, or other places serving food, except drive-in or drive-through
restaurants.
b. Prohibited uses: Activities specifically prohibited include repair or service of
motor vehicles and other large equipment; manufacturing processes which would
normally require industrial zoning; any activity which may become a nuisance
due to noise, unsightliness or odor; and any activity which may adversely affect
surrounding property.
c. Conditions: [amended 8/04]
1) Outdoor storage is prohibited.
2) The area devoted to approved uses shall not exceed 2,500 square feet.
3) All goods produced on the premises shall be sold at retail on the premises
where produced.
4) All business, servicing, or processing shall be conducted within a
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completely enclosed building, or in an area specifically approved by the
Planning Commission.
5) Parking shall be accommodated on site or with limited street parking.
6) Hours of operation may be limited by the Planning Commission.
7) Signs must comply with those set forth for the residential zoning district.
8) The Planning Commission may allow a use to sell alcohol, however the
Commission may limit the type of license applied for or obtained for the
sale of alcohol to an SDM, hours of operation, and any other restrictions
intended to stabilize, protect, and encourage the residential character of the
area. The use must gain approval from the Michigan Liquor Control
Commission before alcohol can be or sold.
6. Accessory buildings and accessory uses customarily incidental to the above Special Land
Uses Permitted.
7. Uses similar to the above Special Land Uses Permitted.
SECTION 702: PLANNED UNIT DEVELOPMENT [amended 10/98]
Planned developments may be allowed by the Planning Commission under the procedural
guidelines of Section 2101. The intent of Planned Unit Development in the RM-1 Low Density
Multiple Family Residential District is to allow mixed land uses, which are compatible to each
other, while prohibiting nonresidential uses which would not be compatible or harmonious with
residential dwellings.
SECTION 703: AREA AND BULK REQUIREMENTS [amended 4/00]
1. Minimum lot size: 10,890 sq. feet.
2. Density (see definition in Article II): 16 dwelling units per buildable acre.
3. Dedicated open space requirement: 15 %
4. Maximum lot coverage:
Buildings: 60 %
Pavement: 20 %
5. Lot width: 100 feet (shall be measured at road frontage unless a cul-de-sac, then
measured from setback).
6. Maximum building width: 50% (as a portion of the lot width).
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7. Width to depth ratios: The depth of any lot(s) or parcel(s) shall not be more than three
(3) times longer its width.
8. Height limit: 3 stories or 50 feet.
Height measurement: 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). 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).
9. Front Setbacks: [amended 1/05]
Minimum:
Expressway or Arterial Street: 30 feet
Collector or Major Street: 25 feet
Minor Street: 20 feet
10. Rear setback: 30 feet
11. Setback from the ordinary high water mark or wetland: 50 feet (principal structures
only).
12. Side setbacks:
1-story: 8 feet and 12 feet
2-story: 10 feet and 14 feet
3-story: 12 feet and 16 feet
Note, setback measurement: All required setbacks shall be measured from the right-of-
way line to the nearest point of the determined drip line of buildings. [amended 10/02]
13. Zero lot line option: New principal buildings may be erected on the rear lot line and/or
one side lot line provided: [amended 10/02]
a. The building has an approved fire rating for zero-lot line development under the
building code.
b. The building has adequate fire access preserved pursuant to fire code
requirements.
c. The zero lot line side is not adjacent to a street.
d. A maintenance access easement is granted by the adjacent property owner and
recorded with the County Register of Deeds and provided to the zoning
administrator with the site plan or plot plan.
e. It is not adjacent to wetlands, or waterfront.
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14. All required side and rear setbacks shall be landscaped, greenbelt buffers, unless zero-lot-
line is employed for a structure or fire access. At least fifty percent of all required front
setbacks shall be landscaped and adjacent to the road right-of-way. An average minimum
greenbelt of 10 feet shall be maintained along each street frontage. [amended 12/01,
amended 10/02]
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