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

Bridgewater Township’s own rules

• Local zoningPresent (with conditions)

  Land inside Bridgewater township limits (Washtenaw County, MI). Township-administered zoning ordinance No. 67.

  • Ordinance No. 67 was adopted May 2, 2013 and became effective May 20, 2013.
  • Township zoning article 3.0 PDF is marked as amended 6/2/2016 (ord. no. 67-1); the amended text should be checked against the current ordinance.

  “notice is hereby given that the township board for bridgewater township, washtenaw county, michigan adopted a comprehensive new zoning ordinance no. 67 regulating the development and use of land at a regular meeting on may 2, 2013.”

• Minimum lot sizeDistrict specific (with conditions)

  Hamlet Residential (R-3) district, the main single-family residential district, inside Bridgewater township

  • Table minimum area for R-3 reads 10,000 sq ft and minimum width 75 ft, per column order in the flattened table; confirm against the PDF.
  • Section 3.202 c. one-acre minimum also applies to R-3 dwellings not served by municipal sewer and water.

  minimum lot area: >= 10000 sq ft (R-3 Hamlet Residential, dwellings served by municipal water and sewer) · minimum lot width: >= 75 ft (R-3 Hamlet Residential)

  “r-3 bcd c li psp 35 35 35 35 35 2.5 2.5 2.0 2.0 2.0 75 75 200 250 100 10,000 sq.ft. 10,000 sq.ft. 1.0 acre 2.0 10,000 acres sq.ft.”

  2 more reviewed findings on this topic

  • District specific (with conditions) — General Agriculture (AG) and Conservation Preservation (CP) districts inside Bridgewater township

    “section 3.101 table of dimensional standards by district. districts cp ag feet 35 35 stories 2.5 2.5 lot standards (per unit) minimum width (feet) 250 250 minimum area (acres or square-feet) 2.0 2.0 acres acres”

  • Specified — Residential dwellings in any rural or residential district in Bridgewater township not served by both municipal sanitary sewer and municipal water

    “c. minimum lot area for rural residential dwellings. the minimum lot area for residential dwellings in any rural district or residential district not served by a municipal sanitary sewerage system and a municipal water system shall be not less than one (1) acre, and shall satisfy all applicable washtenaw county environmental health division requirements for use of private septic systems.”

• SetbacksDistrict specific (with conditions)

  General Agriculture (AG) district inside Bridgewater township

  • Front 75 ft, side 30 ft, rear 50 ft per the table's AG column (second value of each pair).
  • Section 3.203 bars permanent structures within the required front yard, except porches, fences and similar improvements.

  minimum front yard: >= 75 ft (AG) · minimum side yard: >= 30 ft (AG) · minimum rear yard: >= 50 ft (AG)

  “minimum front yard 75 75 minimum side yard 50 30 minimum rear yard 50 50”

  2 more reviewed findings on this topic

  • District specific (with conditions) — Conservation Preservation (CP) district inside Bridgewater township

    “minimum front yard 75 75 minimum side yard 50 30 minimum rear yard 50 50”

  • District specific (with conditions) — Hamlet Residential (R-3) district, the main single-family residential district, inside Bridgewater township

    “25 20 35 75 35 10 10 15 50 10 35 35 35 100 35”

• Lot coverageDistrict specific (with conditions)

  Conservation Preservation (CP) and General Agriculture (AG) districts inside Bridgewater township

  • Table shows maximum ground floor coverage of 10% and floor area ratio of 0.10 for the CP/AG column group.

  maximum ground floor coverage: <= 10 % (CP and AG) · maximum floor area ratio: <= 0.1 ratio (CP and AG)

  “maximum floor area ratio (far) 0.10 maximum ground floor coverage (gfc) 10%”

  One more reviewed finding on this topic

  • District specific (with conditions) — Hamlet Residential (R-3) district inside Bridgewater township

    “0.35 0.60 0.60 0.30 0.60 35% 40% 30% 30% 30%”

• Building heightDistrict specific (with conditions)

  Conservation Preservation (CP) and General Agriculture (AG) districts inside Bridgewater township

  • Maximum 35 ft and 2.5 stories per the table's CP/AG columns.
  • Section 3.201 height exceptions apply (farm structures, wireless towers, WECS, institutional uses, certain appurtenances).

  maximum building height: <= 35 ft (CP and AG) · maximum stories: <= 2.5 stories (CP and AG)

  “section 3.101 table of dimensional standards by district. districts cp ag feet 35 35 stories 2.5 2.5 lot standards (per unit)”

  One more reviewed finding on this topic

  • District specific (with conditions) — Hamlet Residential (R-3) district inside Bridgewater township

    “r-3 bcd c li psp 35 35 35 35 35 2.5 2.5 2.0 2.0 2.0”

• Camping on your landLimited

  Campgrounds and recreational vehicle parks inside Bridgewater township (not single-lot camping)

  • Campgrounds and RV parks are seasonal only, except for resident managers or caretakers.
  • Minimum site area is 10 acres; camping areas must be at least 100 feet from lot boundaries.
  • Campground and RV park uses need planning commission site plan approval; use is treated under section 5.309.

  minimum site area: >= 10 acres (recreational vehicle parks and campgrounds) · camping area setback from lot boundary: >= 100 feet

  “structures and areas designated for camping shall be located a minimum of 100 feet from all lot boundaries.”

• Accessory dwellingsLimited

  Accessory dwelling units on single-family lots in the rural and residential districts inside Bridgewater township

  • Maximum of one accessory dwelling unit per principal dwelling.
  • ADU must be entirely within the principal building, not in a detached accessory structure, and must not change the building exterior appearance.
  • Minimum ADU gross floor area 300 sq ft; ADU may not occupy more than 25% of the principal building's gross floor area.
  • Principal building must be the owner's primary and permanent legal residence with at least 1,200 sq ft gross floor area.
  • Construction or expansion requires site plan approval under article 8.0.
  • Land must meet the minimum lot area for the zoning district for both dwellings.

  ADU maximum per principal dwelling: 1 dwelling unit · ADU minimum gross floor area: >= 300 sq ft · ADU maximum share of principal building: <= 25 % · principal building minimum gross floor area: >= 1200 sq ft

  “a maximum of one (1) accessory dwelling unit shall be permitted per principal dwelling.”

Rules another office applies inside Bridgewater Township

Bridgewater 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

  Building construction in Bridgewater township, processed by the Western Washtenaw Construction Authority (WWCA), not by the township itself.

  • WWCA is a regional body whose members include Freedom, Bridgewater and Manchester townships and the Village of Manchester.
  • Permits are required before work proceeds; construction may proceed after permit issuance.

  “building permits and corresponding activities for bridgewater township are processed by the western washtenaw construction authority”

• InspectionsRequired

  Building and trade work in Bridgewater township, inspected by the WWCA.

  • Inspections are those corresponding to WWCA-issued building and trade permits; the specific inspection list is in documents linked from the WWCA page, which were not opened.

  “it is responsible for building and trade permits, and corresponding inspections, as detailed in the documents identified below.”

• Who permits septicCounty (with conditions)

  Private septic systems for dwellings inside Bridgewater township, administered by Washtenaw County Environmental Health.

  • The township ordinance requires compliance with county environmental health requirements for private septic systems; the county page confirms it handles well and septic permits and records.

  “our onbase program allows you to search for washtenaw county well, septic, building inspection, and soil erosion records and permits.”

• Permit processPartial

  Building permit intake for work in Bridgewater township

  • Contact the WWCA at 912 City Rd, P.O. Box 556, Manchester, MI 48158, (734) 428-7001.
  • Office hours are Monday, Wednesday and Friday, 8 a.m. to 1 p.m.
  • Permit documents are linked from the WWCA page but were not opened, so the application steps are only partly published.

  “office hours: monday, wednesday, friday, 8am – 1p.m.”

Still unanswered

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

• Owner-builder exemption — Owner-builder permit exemption for a home inside Bridgewater township
• Building code adopted — Building code edition enforced for construction inside Bridgewater township
• Certificate of occupancy — Certificate of occupancy for new dwellings in Bridgewater township
• Living in an RV — Living in an RV on private land inside Bridgewater township
• Tiny homes — Tiny homes used as dwellings inside Bridgewater 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.