Zoning, building permits and septic rules in Maple Grove Township, Michigan

Maple Grove Township’s own rules

• Building permitRequired

  Temporary dwellings (trailers, mobile homes, garages or basements used as dwellings) in Maple Grove township.

  • Applies to temporary dwellings under section 1070, not to permanent dwellings generally.
  • Trailer coaches or mobile homes authorized as temporary dwellings must be blocked, leveled, anchored and skirted within 30 days after approval for occupancy.

  “a building permit shall be required prior the installation and use of the temporary dwelling.”

• Local zoningPresent

  Land inside Maple Grove township covered by the township's own zoning ordinance, which by its Article 18 scope sentence applies to the unincorporated portion of the township. Zoning is administered jointly with the Village of Kaleva per the township website.

  • The copy located is the 2007 official copy (adopted 2007-09-10, effective 2007-10-03); later amendments were not verified.
  • The township ordinances page lists further zoning ordinance PDFs (intro thru art 9; art 10 thru 33; art 34 thru 59; art 60 thru 85; art 86 thru 98) and a zoning map; those township-hosted files were not opened.
  • Joint planning commission office: 9208 Kauko St., Kaleva.

  “maple grove township is partnered with the village of kaleva for planning and zoning.”

• Zoning districtsPublished

  Land use districts of Maple Grove township's unincorporated area.

  • Districts: FR-I forest recreational, wildlife, wetland; AG-I agricultural-residential; R-I single family; R-II multiple family; R-III multiple family; CR-I commercial-residential; IR-I industrial-residential; wellhead protection overlay.
  • The district boundaries are on the zoning map incorporated by reference (section 1802).

  “1801. land use districts: the unincorporated portion of maple grove township, manistee county, michigan, is divided into the following land use districts:”

• Minimum dwelling sizeSpecified

  Dwellings in the agricultural-residential (AG-I) district of Maple Grove township.

  • The exception for housing for migrant workers is stated in the source.
  • The R-I (single-family) minimum floor area was not verified.

  minimum dwelling floor area: >= 600 square feet (except housing for migrant workers)

  “floor area for dwelling (except how ing for migrant workers) - six hundred (600) square feet.”

• Minimum lot sizeSpecified

  Parcels in the agricultural-residential (AG-I) district of Maple Grove township.

  • The AG-I minimum lot size was raised by a 2007 amendment, effective 2007-10-04.

  minimum lot size: >= 5 acres

  “a. lot size - five (5) acres. [annotation: the minimum lot size increased from one (1) acre to five (5) ac es by amendment adopted september 10, 2007, effective october 4, 2007 at 12:01am.]”

  One more reviewed finding on this topic

  • Specified — Parcels in the forest, recreational, wildlife, wetland (FR-I) district of Maple Grove township.

    “a. minimum lot size - five (5) acres. [annotation: the minimum lot size increased from 30,00(square feet to five (5) acres by amendment adopted september 10, 2007, effective october 4, 2007 at 12:01am.]”

• SetbacksSpecified

  Structures in the forest, recreational, wildlife, wetland (FR-I) district of Maple Grove township.

  • Also a 45-foot setback from the nearest high water of a stream, lake or wetland, with 10 feet of greenbelt, as stated in the same section.

  side yard setback: 25 feet · rear yard setback: 25 feet · street or roadway setback: 35 feet

  “minimum side yard - twenty-five (25) feet. minimum rear yard setback - twenty-five (25) feet. minimum setback from street or roadway - thirty-five (35) feet.”

  One more reviewed finding on this topic

  • Specified — Structures in the agricultural-residential (AG-I) district of Maple Grove township.

    “front yard setback for all structures -thirty-five (35) feet. side yard setback - twenty-five (25) feet.”

• Living in an RVTemporary only (with conditions)

  Use of trailers, motor homes, campers or other temporary structures as a dwelling unit inside Maple Grove township under the township zoning ordinance (Article 10, section 1070).

  • Temporary structures may be used as a dwelling only as section 1070 allows: a temporary dwelling permit from the zoning administrator, limited to one year and renewable for up to two more years for good cause.
  • Temporary dwellings must be totally self-contained or have a septic setup meeting county sanitary code, must meet setbacks, and must comply with building and fire codes.
  • Temporary dwellings used while a permanent dwelling is under construction require a building permit before installation.

  temporary dwelling permit term: 12 months (renewable yearly for not more than two additional years for good cause)

  “1070. temporary dwellings: no tent, trailer, trailer coach, motor home, camper, or other temporary structure shall be employed as a dwelling unit except as hereinafter provided.”

• Manufactured homesAllowed

  Mobile homes in the R-I single-family residential district of Maple Grove township (unincorporated portion).

  • Listed as a permitted use in the R-I district; dimensional and siting standards for R-I were not opened.
  • Temporary mobile home use is separately governed by section 1070.

  “e. office or studio of professional or 1 service person residing on the premises. f. mobile homes.”

• Off-grid sanitationLimited

  Temporary dwellings without a connected septic system in Maple Grove township.

  • A temporary dwelling without a septic facility must be totally self-contained.
  • Permanent dwellings' sanitation was not established by the opened text.

  “they shall be totally se f-contained or have a proper septic facility setup that meets county sanitary code.”

• Driveway accessLimited

  Driveways serving parcels in the agricultural-residential (AG-I) district of Maple Grove township.

  • Only the AG-I clear-width standard was located; the general driveway design rule (section 1052) was not opened.

  driveway clear width: >= 16 feet

  “driveway width (clear area) - sixtee n (16) feet.”

• Permit feesVariable (with conditions)

  Temporary dwelling permit fees in Maple Grove township.

  • Fees are set by the township board and no fee schedule was located in the opened text.

  “c. fees for initial aid subsequent permit issuances shall be as established by the maple grove township board.”

• Permit processPartial

  Land use permit applications for development in Maple Grove township.

  • Site plan and building plan are submitted with the land use permit application through the zoning administrator to the planning commission.
  • The full procedure, timelines and forms were not located.

  “site plan and building plan shall be submitted along with the land use permit application to the map.e grove township planning commission thru the zoning administrator.”

Rules another office applies inside Maple Grove Township

Maple Grove 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)

  Septic systems serving temporary dwellings inside Maple Grove township; the township ordinance defers to the county sanitary code.

  • The ordinance references the county sanitary code; the administering county health department and its permit process were not verified.
  • Scope uses geography district-specific because the schema does not allow township-specific geography for a county authority.

  “they shall be totally se f-contained or have a proper septic facility setup that meets county sanitary code.”

Still unanswered

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

• Owner-builder exemption — Owner-builder exemption for a home in Maple Grove township.
• Building code adopted — Adoption of a building code in Maple Grove township.
• Inspections — Building inspections in Maple Grove township.
• Certificate of occupancy — Certificates of occupancy in Maple Grove township.
• Lot coverage — Lot coverage limits in Maple Grove 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.