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

Charleston Township’s own rules

• Building permitRequired

  Construction and home improvements inside Charleston township, administered through Associated Government Services (AGS)

  • Permit covers plumbing, electrical, mechanical, decks, swimming pools, siding, roofing, replacement windows and outbuildings per the township page.
  • Construction may proceed only after AGS issues the permit.

  “building permits are required for all building regardless of use and number of acres owned.”

• InspectionsRequired

  Permitted construction inside Charleston township, inspections performed by AGS under township contract

  • Inspections are provided by AGS under the township contract.

  “ags is responsible to approve and issue permits, provide all required inspections, and issue final completion orders, including occupancy permits.”

• Certificate of occupancyRequired

  Completion and occupancy of new or altered buildings inside Charleston township, issued through AGS

  • Occupancy permit is issued by AGS as part of final completion orders.

  “ags is responsible to approve and issue permits, provide all required inspections, and issue final completion orders, including occupancy permits.”

• Local zoningPresent (with conditions)

  Land inside Charleston township limits (Kalamazoo County, MI) governed by the township's own zoning ordinance

  • The township office runs zoning permit, special exemption use, rezoning/text amendment and site plan review processes, so land-use approvals are township-administered.
  • A supplementary non-official copy (energyzoning.org) is titled Charleston Township Zoning Ordinance, Ordinance No. 112 adopted 2000-09-26, amended through Ordinance No. 164 (April 2022). The ordinance text itself was not opened for this record.

  “zoning questions will be handled by township supervisor jerry vander roest at the township office”

• Subdividing landRegulated (with conditions)

  Land divisions, splits and property combinations inside Charleston township, performed by AGS under township contract

  • Land division and combination processing is handled by AGS on behalf of the township.

  “they also perform all land divisions splits and property combinations.”

• Permit feesPublished (with conditions)

  Township permit fees for work inside Charleston township

  • The township page links a current fee schedule; the schedule amounts were not opened and are not recorded here.

  “click to view current fee schedule. permits, forms and applications available to download”

Rules another office applies inside Charleston Township

Charleston Township does not set these itself; the county, a health district or the state does, and they apply to every address inside its limits.

• Who permits septicCounty (with conditions)

  Onsite sewage disposal systems on land inside Charleston township, administered by Kalamazoo County Environmental Health

  • Schema requires countywide geography for a county authority; the rule applies inside Charleston township because the county program covers the whole county.
  • The township property page does not describe a township septic program.

  “permits and licensing: issuing permits for construction and licensing for regulated facilities. the division's areas of focus include food service establishments, sewage disposal systems, drinking water safety, campgrounds”

Still unanswered

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

• Owner-builder exemption — Owner-builder permit exemption inside Charleston township
• Building code adopted — Building code applied to construction inside Charleston township
• Minimum dwelling size — Minimum dwelling size in the main single-family residential district inside Charleston township
• Minimum lot size — Minimum lot size in the main single-family residential district inside Charleston township
• Setbacks — Yard setbacks in the main single-family residential district inside Charleston 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.