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

Lima Township’s own rules

• Local zoningPresent (with conditions)

  Land inside Lima township limits: Lima Township administers its own Lima Township Zoning Ordinance through its Zoning Administrator.

  • Zoning compliance permits and certificates of zoning compliance are issued by the township Zoning Administrator.
  • A proposed temporary moratorium on consideration of zoning compliance permit and special land use permit applications was noticed for a Planning Commission hearing on July 27, 2026; the notice does not show whether the Board adopted it, so confirm before relying on it.

  “the zoning administrator is responsible for enforcing the township zoning ordinance and all other township ordinances.”

• Zoning districtsPublished (with conditions)

  Land inside Lima township limits.

  • The zoning district map is linked from the township zoning page; the map itself was not opened, so district boundaries are not verified here.

  “zoning districts map zoning forms ordinances looking for an ordinance? click the button below to take you to the ordinances.”

• Permit processPartial

  Zoning-related land use permit applications in Lima township.

  • Only the zoning-permit step is documented; building permit, fee and inspection steps come from the Chelsea Area Construction Agency and were not published in the text reviewed.
  • Office hours are by appointment, Monday through Friday, per the township zoning page.

  “the zoning administrator accepts and reviews land use permit applications, determines compliance with the provisions of the zoning ordinance, and issues certificates of zoning compliance.”

Rules another office applies inside Lima Township

Lima 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 code adoptedAdopted (with conditions)

  Buildings inside Lima township, which is a member of the Chelsea Area Construction Agency (C.A.C.A.) inter-local agency.

  • The Michigan building codes are enforced by C.A.C.A. for building, electrical, mechanical and plumbing systems, per the agency page.
  • The page does not name the specific code editions in effect.

  “c.a.c.a. is tasked with the administration and enforcement of the michigan building codes for building, electrical, mechanical and plumbing systems within the property boundaries of the agency members.”

Still unanswered

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

• Building permit — Building permits for new construction inside Lima township.
• Owner-builder exemption — Owner-builder exemption for homeowners building on their own land inside Lima township.
• Inspections — Building inspections for construction inside Lima township.
• Certificate of occupancy — Certificates of occupancy for new homes inside Lima township.
• Minimum dwelling size — Minimum dwelling size for the main single-family residential district inside Lima 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.