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

Riga Township’s own rules

• Local zoningPresent (with conditions)

  Land inside Riga township limits: the township administers its own zoning ordinance (not county zoning).

  • Ordinance text read is a copy hosted on energyzoning.org, not on a township-hosted page; confirm against the township's own host before relying on it.
  • Ordinance was originally adopted April 8, 1974 per Section 1.07; the 2022-stamped copy's current amendment history was not confirmed.

  “this ordinance shall be known and maybe cited as “the zoning ordinance of riga township.””

• Zoning districtsPublished (with conditions)

  Land inside Riga township limits; districts are defined by the township zoning ordinance.

  • Table of contents lists AA agricultural (Section 6.02), RA residential (6.03), NS neighborhood service commercial (6.04), II industrial (6.05), MH mobile home park (6.06), LI limited industrial (6.07), and GC general commercial/business (Article XIV).
  • Section 6.02 states that Riga township shall be zoned AA agricultural except as provided in the article.
  • Quoted passage is from the table of contents of the copy hosted on energyzoning.org.

  “section 6.01. establishment of districts. the township is hereby divided into the following zoning districts. aa - agricultural district ra - residential district ns - neighborhood service commercial ii - industrial district mh - mobile home park li – light industrial”

• Minimum lot sizeSpecified

  Lots in the AA agricultural district inside Riga township (main agricultural district per Section 6.02).

  • Minimum lot width is 1,000 feet of road frontage (Section 10.04, item 2).
  • Section 10.04 also sets height limits and setbacks for this district.

  minimum lot area: >= 20 acres

  “lot area: no building or structure shall be established on any lot less than twenty (20) acres in area.”

  One more reviewed finding on this topic

  • Specified — Lots in the RA residential district inside Riga township (main single-family residential district per Section 6.03).

    “no building or structure shall be established in this district on any lot less than forty thousand (40,000) square feet.”

• SetbacksSpecified

  Lots and structures in the AA agricultural district inside Riga township.

  • Front yard measured from the right-of-way line.
  • Side yard: the lesser of the two side yards must be at least 25 feet.

  front yard setback: >= 60 feet (measured from right-of-way line) · side yard setback: >= 25 feet (lesser of the two side yards) · rear yard setback: >= 50 feet

  “a. front yard: not less than sixty (60) feet from the right-of-way line. b. side yard: least width of either yard shall not be less than twenty-five (25) feet. c. rear yards: not less than fifty (50) feet.”

  One more reviewed finding on this topic

  • Specified — Lots and structures in the RA residential district inside Riga township.

    “a. front yards: not less than fifty (50) feet. b. side yards: not less than twenty-five (25) feet. c. rear yard: not less than fifty (50) feet.”

• Lot coverageSpecified

  Lots in the RA residential district inside Riga township.

  • Lot coverage limit for the AA agricultural district was not located in the text read.

  maximum lot coverage: <= 20 percent

  “the maximum lot coverage shall not exceed twenty (20) per cent.”

• Building heightSpecified

  Dwellings and non-farm buildings in the AA agricultural district inside Riga township.

  • Height limits for on-site wind energy systems are set separately in Section 10.04.

  maximum height: <= 40 feet · maximum stories: <= 3 stories

  “for dwelling and non-farm buildings and structures: no dwelling or non-farm building or structure shall exceed a height of three (3) stories or forty (40) feet.”

  One more reviewed finding on this topic

  • Specified — Buildings and structures in the RA residential district inside Riga township.

    “for buildings and structures: no building and no structure, except as permitted by this ordinance, shall exceed a height of two and one-half (2 ½) stories or thirty-five (35) feet.”

• Camping on your landLimited

  Public and private camping grounds in the AA agricultural district inside Riga township. This does not address an individual camping on private land.

  • Listed as a conditional use in the AA district, which requires a conditional use permit under Section 7.21.
  • Individual temporary camping on private land was not addressed in the ordinance text read.

  “public and private park camping ground, golf course, golf driving range, clubs, hunting lodge, in accordance with section 7.19.”

• Manufactured homesLimited

  Mobile homes used as dwellings in any Riga township zone where single family dwellings are allowed.

  • Only one dwelling or one mobile home per lot.
  • Must meet the minimum square footage of the zone, be at least 20 feet wide on any elevation, and comply with the Michigan Residential Building Code.
  • Must be firmly attached to a permanent foundation, have wheels removed, and be connected to public sewer and water or health-department-approved private facilities.
  • Storage area equal to 10% of dwelling square footage or 100 square feet, whichever is less.
  • Section 7.22 allows a permit to keep a mobile home for up to one year while a fire- or storm-damaged home is rebuilt, or during new construction with an approved well and septic.

  minimum width across any front, side or rear elevation: >= 20 feet · storage area share of dwelling square footage: <= 10 percent (or 100 square feet, whichever shall be less) · temporary mobile home permit duration: <= 1 year (Section 7.22 damage-rebuild or new-construction permit)

  “mobile homes shall be permitted in any zone within the township where single family dwellings are allowed, provided that it meets the following requirements:”

Rules another office applies inside Riga Township

Riga 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)

  Private water and sanitary sewer site development inside Riga township, under the zoning ordinance's reference to the Lenawee County Health Department.

  • The zoning ordinance defers site development and use requirements for water supply and sanitary sewerage to the Lenawee County Health Department.
  • Septic permit, inspection and well permit rules were not located in the ordinance text read.

  “site development and use requirement shall be established by the lenawee county health department.”

Still unanswered

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

• Building permit — Building permit requirement for new residential construction inside Riga township
• Owner-builder exemption — Owner-builder exemption for building a home inside Riga township
• Inspections — Building inspections for new homes inside Riga township
• Certificate of occupancy — Certificate of occupancy for new homes inside Riga township
• Minimum dwelling size — Minimum dwelling floor area inside Riga 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.