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

Bloomer Township’s own rules

• Building permitRequired

  Erection, alteration, moving, or structural change of any building or structure inside Bloomer township

  • A preliminary certificate of zoning compliance must be issued before a building permit (sec. 22.03(a)).
  • Sec. 22.04 names the building inspector but does not say whether the township, county, or state employs that inspector; confirm the issuing office.

  “b. no building or other structure shall be erected, moved, added to, or structurally altered without a building permit issued by the building inspector.”

• InspectionsLimited

  Final zoning inspection before a final certificate of zoning compliance in Bloomer township

  • This is a zoning-compliance final inspection by the zoning administrator, not a confirmed building-code inspection program; building-code inspections are not established in this record.

  “a final certificate of zoning compliance shall notify the zoning administrator when final inspection is desired.”

• Certificate of occupancyRequired

  Use or occupancy of a building in Bloomer township after construction

  • Issued by the zoning administrator as a final certificate of zoning compliance; the ordinance makes it unlawful to occupy a building without it (sec. 22.03(b)).

  “the final certificate of zoning compliance shall be issued upon final inspection or written notice shall be given to the applicant stating the reasons why said certificate cannot be issued.”

• Local zoningPresent (with conditions)

  All land inside Bloomer township limits. Bloomer township adopts and administers its own zoning ordinance (Bloomer Township Zoning Ordinance of 1992, amended through Nov 1, 2015).

  • The ordinance text used here is a 2015 compilation. Later amendments listed on the township site (Ordinance 22-01 wind and solar, Aug 15, 2022; Ordinance 19-01 marihuana) were not opened and are not reflected in these claims.
  • The township zoning ordinance page on bloomertownship.org could not be opened in this session; the text was taken from a PDF copy hosted on energyzoning.org.

  “bloomer township zoning ordinance adopted by the bloomer township board november 23, 1992 as amended through november 01, 2015 bloomer township, montcalm county michigan”

• Zoning districtsPublished (with conditions)

  Zoning districts of Bloomer township

  • Districts are CO, FM, RR, UR, CS and MA; the official zoning map is in appendix A (map revised 10-03-2008, not opened).

  “for the purpose of this ordinance the township of bloomer is hereby divided into the following zoning districts, which shall be known by the following respective symbols and names.”

• Minimum dwelling sizeSpecified

  Dwellings in the FM farmland district (agricultural)

  • Gross living space excludes basements, garages, porches and breezeways.

  minimum gross living space per dwelling unit: >= 900 sq ft (exclusive of basements, garages, porches and breezeways)

  “h. every dwelling hereafter erected shall have a minimum gross living space per dwelling unit of not less than nine hundred (900) square feet, exclusive of basements, garages, porches and breezeways.”

  2 more reviewed findings on this topic

  • Specified — Single-family detached or two-family dwellings in the UR urban residential district

    “g. single-family detached or two-family dwellings: every dwelling hereafter erected shall have a minimum gross living space per dwelling unit of not less than nine hundred (900) square feet, exclusive of basements, garages, porches and breezeways.”

  • Specified — Single-family detached dwellings in the RR rural residential district

    “(1) single-family detached: every dwelling hereafter erected shall have a minimum gross living space per dwelling unit of not less than nine hundred (900) square feet, exclusive of basements, garages, porches and breeze ways.”

• Minimum lot sizeSpecified

  UR urban residential district

  • Lot area is 10,000 sq ft where the parcel is served by public sewer.

  minimum lot area, no public sewer: >= 15000 sq ft (10,000 sq ft where serviced by public sewer)

  “a. minimum lot area: no building or structure shall be established on any parcel less than fifteen thousand (15,000) square feet in lot area unless serviced by public sewer, in which case no building or structure shall be established on any parcel less than ten thousand (10,000) square feet in lot area.”

• SetbacksSpecified

  FM farmland district

  • Accessory buildings for nonfarm dwellings may not be placed between the front lot line and the setback (sec. 7.07(h)).

  front yard setback: 50 ft · side yard setback: 20 ft · corner side yard setback: 50 ft · rear yard setback: 50 ft

  “d. minimum setbacks - front 50 ft. - -side 20ft. - corner 50 ft. - rear 50 ft.”

  One more reviewed finding on this topic

  • Specified — RR rural residential district

    “(1) front yard: fifty (50) feet. e. the maximum lot coverage shall not exceed twenty percent (20%) of total (2) side yard: forty (40) feet. (3) rear yard: seventy-five (75) feet.”

• Lot coverageSpecified

  FM farmland district

  maximum lot coverage: <= 10 percent

  “c. max. lot coverage - 10% d. minimum setbacks - front 50 ft.”

  2 more reviewed findings on this topic

  • Specified — UR urban residential district

    “c. maximum lot coverage: thirty percent (30%) of total lot area.”

  • Specified — RR rural residential district

    “the maximum lot coverage shall not exceed twenty percent (20%) of total”

• Building heightSpecified

  RR rural residential district

  • Residential accessory buildings may not exceed 25 feet.

  maximum height: <= 36 ft (two (2) stories)

  “maximum height requirements: no structure shall exceed two (2) stories or thirty-six (36) feet measured from the average finished grade at the front setback line.”

  One more reviewed finding on this topic

  • Specified — UR urban residential district

    “maximum height requirements: no structure shall exceed two (2) stories or thirty (30) feet measured from the average finished grade at the front setback line.”

• Manufactured homesLimited

  Mobile home parks in the UR urban residential district of Bloomer township

  • Mobile home parks are allowed only by special use permit under article XX in the UR district.
  • Michigan Mobile Home Commission standards govern mobile home parks where they are more stringent (sec. 4 general provisions).

  “a. planned unit developments. b. multi-family dwelling of not more than eight (8) units. c. mobile home park.”

• Mandatory utility hookupConditional

  New dwellings inside Bloomer township

  • The ordinance requires potable water and a safe means of waste disposal, but this excerpt does not mandate connection to public water or sewer.
  • Where public sewer serves a lot in the UR district, minimum lot area and width are reduced (sec. 9.05).

  “any structure erected for human occupancy after the effective date of this ordinance and used for dwelling, business, industrial, or recreational purposes shall be provided with a safe, sanitary, and potable water supply, and with a safe and effective means of collection, treatment, and disposal of human, commercial, or industrial wastes.”

• Subdividing landLimited

  Creating nonfarm dwelling lots in the FM farmland district

  • Lots are limited to no more than two acres and must be described by a recorded certificate of survey (sec. 7.07(a)); this is not a general subdivision regulation and state land division rules are not analyzed here.

  “each lot for a nonfarm dwelling unit shall be a separately conveyed parcel of no more than two acres in area and described by a recorded certificate of survey unless a larger parcel is required by the montcalm county health department to accommodate a drain field for a septic system”

• Permit processPublished (with conditions)

  Zoning and building permit sequence for construction in Bloomer township

  • Preliminary certificate of zoning compliance first; zoning administrator must respond within 15 days (sec. 22.03(a)).

  “a building permit for erection, alteration, moving or repair of any building shall not be issued until a preliminary certificate of zoning compliance has been issued therefore.”

Rules another office applies inside Bloomer Township

Bloomer 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 septicMixed (with conditions)

  Onsite sewage disposal for dwellings inside Bloomer township

  • Installations must meet state of Michigan requirements and the local district health department rules; sec. 7.07 names the Montcalm County Health Department for drain-field lot sizing.
  • Sec. 16.05 applies to new structures erected for human occupancy after the ordinance's effective date.

  “all such installations shall comply with the requirements of the state of michigan and the local district health department.”

Still unanswered

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

• Owner-builder exemption — Owner-builder permit exemption in Bloomer township
• Building code adopted — Building code adoption for new construction inside Bloomer township
• Living in an RV — Occupancy of a recreational vehicle on private land in Bloomer township
• Tiny homes — Tiny home occupancy in Bloomer township
• Accessory dwellings — Accessory apartment or echo housing in Bloomer 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.