Zoning, building permits and septic rules in Forest Township, Michigan

Forest Township’s own rules

• Local zoningPresent

  Land inside Forest township's limits (Genesee County, Michigan) is governed by the township's own adopted Forest Township Zoning Ordinance.

  • The ordinance is dated 'adopted 12/13/07' and carries amendment tags such as [2022-1] in its text, so it has been amended since adoption.
  • The township's home page states that a public hearing on proposed changes to the zoning ordinance affecting residential districts was announced for Oct 24, 2026; this claim does not reflect any amendment adopted after the posted PDF.

  “the township is hereby divided into the following zoning districts:”

• Zoning districtsPublished

  Zoning districts inside Forest township's limits

  • Districts listed in section 4.01: RA residential agricultural, RU-1 single-family residential, RU-2 multiple-family residential, MHP mobile home park, NC neighborhood/commercial, GC general commercial, LI light industrial, and planned unit development (section 4.06).
  • The district boundaries are shown on the Forest Township zoning map, which the ordinance says is attached and made part of it (section 4.02); the map is a separate PDF on the ordinances page.
  • Any use not expressly listed as a principal use permitted is prohibited in the district (section 4.03).

  “the township is hereby divided into the following zoning districts: ra residential agricultural ru-1 single-family residential ru-2 multiple-family residential mhp mobile home park nc neighborhood/commercial gc general commercial li light industrial planned unit development district (see section 4.06)”

• Minimum dwelling sizeSpecified

  Dwellings in the RA residential agricultural district inside Forest township

  • Footnote (g): a house with two or more levels shall have a minimum floor area of 1,200 square feet.
  • Section 4.12 minimum floor area is per dwelling in square feet; the ordinance does not state whether the figure is ground floor or total floor area.

  minimum floor area per dwelling (single-level): >= 960 sq ft (two or more levels: 1,200 sq ft (footnote g))

  “(g) a house with two or more levels shall have a minimum floor area of 1,200 square feet.”

  One more reviewed finding on this topic

  • Specified — Dwellings in the RU-1 single-family residential district inside Forest township

    “(g) a house with two or more levels shall have a minimum floor area of 1,200 square feet.”

• Minimum lot sizeSpecified

  RA residential agricultural district inside Forest township (agricultural/rural-residential district)

  • Table values come from section 4.12; the minimum land area is per dwelling or commercial or industrial building.
  • Minimum lot width is 150 feet in RA, measured at the minimum front yard setback (footnote a).
  • Footnote (b): in no case shall the length of any parcel exceed 4 times the width of the parcel.
  • Footnote (e) height exception and (f) accessory setbacks are addressed in other claims; no lot-area exception was found in the excerpted text.

  minimum land area per dwelling: >= 65000 sq ft · minimum lot width: >= 150 feet

  “ra 65,000 sq. ft. 150 50 15 25 960(g) 35”

  One more reviewed finding on this topic

  • Specified — RU-1 single-family residential district inside Forest township (main single-family residential district)

    “ru-1 40,000 sq. ft. 100 50 15(f) 25(f) 960(g) 35”

• SetbacksSpecified

  RA residential agricultural district inside Forest township (agricultural/rural-residential district)

  • Minimum front yard setback 50 feet, measured from the edge of the right-of-way (footnote c).
  • Minimum side yard setback 15 feet; minimum rear yard setback 25 feet.
  • Footnote (d): no building shall be constructed within 90 feet of the centerline of any public or private road.
  • Footnote (f) applies to RU-1 only; footnote (f) text is not in this RA row, so accessory-building setbacks in RA are governed by section 6.03 (accessory structures) and section 6.01 (accessory buildings), which were not read in full.
  • Section 6.01 in the ordinance restricts accessory buildings from being between the road and the front of a dwelling in the RA district, except on lakefront properties or parcels containing 20 or more acres.

  minimum front yard setback: >= 50 feet (measured from edge of right-of-way (footnote c)) · minimum side yard setback: >= 15 feet · minimum rear yard setback: >= 25 feet · minimum setback from road centerline: >= 90 feet (footnote (d) applies to any building)

  “(d) no building shall be constructed within 90 feet of the centerline of any public or private road.”

  One more reviewed finding on this topic

  • Specified — RU-1 single-family residential district inside Forest township (main single-family residential district)

    “(f) minimum side and rear yard setbacks for accessory buildings shall be 10 feet.”

• Building heightSpecified

  RA residential agricultural district inside Forest township

  • Footnote (e): not applicable to farm structures such as barns, silos or grain elevator.
  • Section 6.06(a) allows certain rooftop structures to exceed the height limit by no more than fifteen feet, subject to the 10% roof-area limit stated in that section.

  maximum building height: <= 35 feet (farm structures such as barns, silos or grain elevator are excluded (footnote e))

  “(e) not applicable to farm structures such as barns, silos or grain elevator.”

  One more reviewed finding on this topic

  • Specified — RU-1 single-family residential district inside Forest township

    “(e) not applicable to farm structures such as barns, silos or grain elevator.”

• Manufactured homesLimited

  A mobile home placed as accessory housing on a lot with a single-family residence inside Forest township

  • Permitted only as accessory housing by special approval to qualified related persons (section 6.02).
  • Mobile home parks are a separate district (MHP) and are not covered by this claim.
  • Dimensional rules in section 4.12 still apply to the lot.

  “this accessory housing may take the form of an apartment within a single-family dwelling or a mobile home located on the lot with a single-family residence.”

• Accessory dwellingsLimited

  Accessory living quarters on a lot with a single-family residence inside Forest township

  • Available only by special approval, and only to qualified related persons, as outlined in article 4 and article 14 of the zoning ordinance.
  • Section 6.02 says the accessory housing may take the form of an apartment within a single-family dwelling or a mobile home on the lot.
  • Article 14 special-approval standards and the article 4 accessory-housing use entry were not read in full during this research.

  “owners and occupants of residential structures zoned for single-family use may apply for special approval for accessory living quarters to qualified related persons, as outlined in article 4 and article 14.”

Still unanswered

We looked and could not find an official answer yet. Silence is not permission; ask Forest Township or Genesee County directly.

• Building permit — Building permits for new residential construction inside Forest township
• Owner-builder exemption — Owner-builder construction exemption inside Forest township
• Building code adopted — Construction code administration for residential construction inside Forest township
• Inspections — Building inspections inside Forest township
• Certificate of occupancy — Certificate of occupancy for a new dwelling inside Forest township

Each answer was extracted from an official source and independently re-checked against that source by a second reviewer. That is an evidence check, not legal advice. Rules change; confirm with the authority before you buy or build.