Zoning, building permits and septic rules in Bear Lake Township, Michigan

Bear Lake Township’s own rules

• Building permitRequired

  Erection, alteration, relocation or demolition of buildings or structures inside Bear Lake township (township zoning land use permit)

  • This is the township zoning land use permit under Article 84, section 8401, issued by the zoning administrator; it is not evidence of a state or county building-code permit, which was not verified.
  • Construction may proceed only after the permit is issued (conditional).

  “no land shall be occupied or used and no building or structure shall hereafter be erected, altered, relocated or demolished under the provisions of this ordinance until a permit authorizing the same shall be issued by the zoning administrator.”

• Local zoningPresent

  Land inside Bear Lake township's limits (Manistee County, MI). The township adopts and administers its own zoning ordinance through its zoning administrator.

  • The township home page states the township is a zoned community.
  • Ordinance cover reads 'amended august 28th, 2024 effective may 9th, 2024'.
  • The Village of Bear Lake is a separate municipality inside the township; the township R-1 text carves it out ('with the exception of the village of bear lake'). Village zoning was not researched.

  “bear lake township is a zoned community. land use permits are required.”

• Zoning districtsPublished

  Land inside Bear Lake township's limits (Manistee County, MI), zoned under the township zoning map

  • Map districts named in the ordinance cover index: AG-1 Agriculture (Article 37, unclassified land defaults to agricultural), RR-1 Resort Residential (Article 40), R-1 Residential (Article 44), C-1 Commercial (Article 53).
  • Other articles (for example Article 55) also set district rules; the full district list was not reviewed.

  “zoning map agriculture district ag-1 / article 37 all properties that do not currently have any classification shall be classified as agricultural.”

• Minimum dwelling sizeSpecified

  Agricultural district AG-1 (Article 37) inside Bear Lake township

  • Section 3704 exempts seasonal and itinerant farm-employee housing from the minimum lot size and minimum floor area requirements, but such housing must still meet Michigan public health codes and federal rules.

  minimum floor area: >= 850 square feet (seasonal farm-employee housing exempt (section 3704))

  “d. minimum floor area - 850 square feet.”

  2 more reviewed findings on this topic

  • Specified — Single-family residential district R-1 (Article 44) inside Bear Lake township, excluding the Village of Bear Lake

    “f. minimum floor area- 1,000 square feet”

  • Specified — Resort residential district RR-1 (Article 40) inside Bear Lake township

    “d. minimum floor area - 1,000 square feet”

• Minimum lot sizeSpecified

  Single-family residential district R-1 (Article 44) inside Bear Lake township, excluding the Village of Bear Lake

  • A substandard lot of legal record or surveyed before zoning adoption is not prevented from use (section 4402 g).

  minimum parcel area: >= 20000 square feet · minimum parcel width at building line: >= 100 feet · minimum road frontage: >= 100 feet

  “4402 – minimum a. minimum parcel area - 20,000 square feet b. minimum parcel width at building line - 100 feet. c. minimum road frontage - 100 feet.”

  2 more reviewed findings on this topic

  • Specified — Agricultural district AG-1 (Article 37) inside Bear Lake township

    “3702 - minimums a. minimum parcel area - 1 acre with minimum road frontage of 200 feet.”

  • Specified — Resort residential district RR-1 (Article 40) inside Bear Lake township

    “4002 – minimum a. minimum parcel area - 20,000 square feet b. minimum parcel width at building line - 100 feet c. minimum road frontage - 100 feet”

• SetbacksSpecified

  Agricultural district AG-1 (Article 37) inside Bear Lake township

  • Setbacks include accessory buildings.
  • Section 1006 separately requires no dwelling within 50 feet of wetland or flowing water edge in all districts except as noted for AG-1 section 3702 f.

  front setback: >= 50 feet · rear setback: >= 20 feet · side setback: >= 20 feet · water's edge setback: >= 50 feet

  “minimum setbacks, including all accessory buildings. front - 50 feet rear - 20 feet side - 20 feet c. minimum setback from the water's edge of any lake, stream, creek, river or wetland area - 50 feet.”

  One more reviewed finding on this topic

  • Specified — Single-family residential district R-1 (Article 44) inside Bear Lake township, excluding the Village of Bear Lake

    “d. minimum setbacks, including all accessory buildings 1. front - 25 feet 2. rear - 25 feet 3. side - 10 feet”

• Building heightSpecified

  Accessory buildings in the R-1 residential district (Article 44, section 4403) inside Bear Lake township. Principal-building height is not stated in the excerpts reviewed.

  • Height limit is for accessory structures only; the 2022 amendment annotation applies.

  maximum accessory height to peak of roof: <= 18 feet

  “4403 – maximum a. maximum accessory height to peak of roof - 18 feet.”

• Building in a floodplainLimited

  Buildings in wetlands or flood plains of flowing water in any land use district inside Bear Lake township (section 1006)

  • Section 1006 applies in all land use districts, except that it does not override article 37 section 3702 f.
  • No dwelling or structure within 50 feet of the edge of wetlands or flowing water.
  • Building inside a wetland or flood plain is barred where the Department of Natural Resources so determines.

  minimum setback from wetland or flowing water edge: >= 50 feet

  “a. no dwelling or other structure shall be built; located or constructed closer than fifty (50) feet on a horizontal plane to the edge of wetland or flowing bodies of water in any land use district.”

• Permit processPartial

  Land use permit application process inside Bear Lake township (zoning administrator)

  • Plans, specifications and other information required by the zoning administrator must be filed with the application (section 8402).
  • Fee (8406), start-work deadline (8404) and void-permit rules (8405) are listed but their text was not retrieved.

  “8402 - land use applications a. the zoning administrator shall require that copies of plans, specifications and such other information as he may deem necessary shall be filed with the application for permit.”

Still unanswered

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

• Owner-builder exemption — Owner-builder exemption from building permits inside Bear Lake township
• Building code adopted — Building code adoption for construction inside Bear Lake township
• Inspections — Building inspections for construction inside Bear Lake township
• Certificate of occupancy — Certificate of occupancy for new homes inside Bear Lake township
• Lot coverage — Lot coverage for buildings inside Bear Lake 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.