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

Forester Township’s own rules

• Local zoningPresent

  All land inside Forester township limits; the township administers its own zoning ordinance and zoning administrator (county is not the zoning authority there).

  • The county Forester page lists 'Forester Twp Zoning Ordinance' in the township Document Center. The ordinance text opened was a 2022-dated third-party copy hosted by energyzoning.org; the official county PDF could not be opened within the research budget, so amendments after 2022 are unverified.
  • County Forester page names a zoning administrator (Jason Bezemek) for the township.

  “forester twp zoning ordinance document seq 0.00”

Rules another office applies inside Forester Township

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

• Building permitRequired

  New construction and alterations requiring building permits on land inside Forester township; the county Construction Code Department takes the application (no township building department found). Applies inside Forester township only as far as the county procedures page reaches.

  • Zoning (land use) approval from the township zoning administrator must be obtained first.
  • Building, electrical, plumbing and mechanical permits all follow the county procedures page.
  • Permit may be cancelled if no inspection occurs within six months of start (per county procedures).

  “zoning approval is required from your city, village or township zoning administrator”

• Building code adoptedAdopted

  Building construction inside Forester township, which is enforced under the Michigan Construction Code via the Sanilac County Construction Code Department.

  • The county page states the Michigan Construction Code applies; the state code text itself was not opened within budget.
  • Cities and villages can run their own building departments; Forester is a township and no township building department was found.

  “the michigan construction code requires that this department keep a copy of all inspection records with the permit file”

• InspectionsRequired

  Permitted construction inside Forester township, inspected by the Sanilac County Construction Code Department.

  • Permit holder must schedule inspections using the permit number; request must name the city, village or township.
  • Re-inspection fees may apply if corrections are required.

  “all building permits are required to have periodic inspections”

• Who permits septicCounty (with conditions)

  Septic and well review for projects inside Forester township that add bathrooms or bedrooms, handled by the Sanilac County Health Department.

  • Triggered when sanitary facilities or bedrooms are added; the county page does not spell out a stand-alone septic rule for other work.
  • Health department service-area language for Forester township was not separately verified; sanilachealth.com homepage did not show septic pages.

  “a septic and/or well permit are to be reviewed by the sanilac county health department”

• Septic permitRequired

  Projects inside Forester township that add sanitary facilities (bathrooms) or bedrooms.

  • Permit needed only when the project adds sanitary facilities or bedrooms; otherwise existing facilities are reviewed.
  • Permit reviewed by Sanilac County Health Department.

  “a septic and/or well permit are to be reviewed by the sanilac county health department”

• Well permitRequired

  Private well installation tied to projects inside Forester township that add bathrooms or bedrooms.

  • Well permit reviewed by the Sanilac County Health Department as part of the building permit process; a stand-alone well permit trigger for other projects is not confirmed.

  “a septic and/or well permit are to be reviewed by the sanilac county health department”

• Driveway accessRequired

  New driveways or changed use on land inside Forester township.

  • Driveway permit comes from the road authority with jurisdiction over the right of way; for Forester this is not confirmed (county road commission or state trunkline).
  • Building on an approved private road requires compliance with the county land development code article 14.28.

  “you will need a driveway permit from the city, village, county or state authority having jurisdiction over the road right of way”

• Permit processPartial

  Building permit application process for work inside Forester township.

  • Land use permit from the township zoning administrator (with site plan and nonrefundable fee) must accompany the county building permit application, with two sets of plans.
  • Process is published on the county page; township land-use step is published in the ordinance copy.

  “an application for a permit may be made monday through friday (except legal holidays) at the construction code department office”

Still unanswered

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

• Owner-builder exemption — Owner-builder permit exemption for work inside Forester township.
• Minimum lot size — Agricultural-residential (A-R) district, section 9.05.02, inside Forester township.
• Setbacks — Residential (R) district principal-building yards, section 9.03.04, inside Forester township.
• Building height — Residential (R) district building height, section 9.03.07, inside Forester township.
• Tiny homes — Tiny homes used as dwellings inside Forester 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.