Grosse Ile Township
City Zoning Code
City Zoning Code
ARTICLE 4
Multiple-Family Residential Districts
[Ord. No. 210, effective 9-25-1994]
285-4.1 Intent.
The regulations concerning multiple-family districts provide for a variety of single-family and multiple-family residential land uses. This district is intended to meet the housing needs of people who choose to live in residential areas with higher density than single-family districts, generally in multiple-family attached units. This district also provides for a limited range of other uses that are considered necessary or appropriate to enhance the quality of life within Grosse Ile's multiple-family residential neighborhoods. Specifically, the regulations set forth herein are intended to provide for the following:
Common types of housing include various forms of multiple-family residential units and single-family residential units.
The allocation of land for multiple-family residential uses shall be based on the determination of need, the availability and adequacy of public facilities and services, and compatibility with the environment and surrounding uses. Multiple-family residential districts, in some cases, can be used to provide a transition between nonresidential districts and nearby single-family residential districts.
Multiple-family uses are classified into two districts. The R-2 Multiple-Family Residential District permits attached dwelling units in settings characterized by abundant open space, at a density, as defined in Article 1, of up to 5.8 units per acre, subject to site conditions and all ordinance standards. The R-3 Multiple-Family Residential District permits attached dwelling units at a density, as defined in Article 1, of up to 8.7 units per acre, subject to site conditions and all ordinance standards. This provides the opportunity for development of more affordable housing and meet the needs of individuals and families needing less space that is compatible with the predominant surrounding single-family development.
285-4.2 Permitted uses.
In multiple-family residential districts, no building shall be erected and no building or land shall be used except for the following uses, unless otherwise permitted in this chapter, or by state or federal law, subject to the standards and requirements set forth herein:
Principal uses.
Single-family detached dwelling units meeting the residential design standards of § 285-3.4E and the R-1-B District standards. Single-family subdivisions and site condominium projects must also comply with Municipal Code requirements, including Chapter 71, Condominium Projects, and Chapter 238, Subdivision Control, as appropriate.
Multiple-family dwelling units. Multiple-family units which are reached off of a common stair landing or entryway are only permitted in the R-3 District.
Land designated as public parks, public/private open space, bike paths and lands designated for preservation as part of the natural drainage system.
State-licensed adult foster care family home (six or fewer adults) in a single-family residence.
State-licensed adult foster care family home (six or fewer adults; foster care five or more days/week) in a single-family residence.
State-licensed family day-care (one to six children, less than twenty-four-hour care) in a single-family residence.
State-licensed foster family homes (one to four children, twenty-four-hour care).
Essential services not including buildings or storage yards, when operating requirements necessitate their location within the district to serve the immediate vicinity as determined by the Planning Commission.
Accessory uses, buildings and structures. The following accessory buildings, structures and uses, customarily incidental to any of the principal uses, located on the same parcel and not involving any business, profession, or trade except as provided for herein shall be permitted, subject also to the provisions set forth in Article 19, General Provisions:
Garage or carport facilities designed and used for the storage of vehicles owned and customarily used as part of residential life-style by the occupants;
A private swimming pool and tennis courts for the exclusive use of the occupants of the property on which they are located and their gratuitous guests, provided that swimming pools shall be constructed and fenced in accordance with Chapter 241, Swimming Pools, of the Municipal Code;
Off-street parking and storage on lots with principal structure(s) as follows:
One recreational vehicle, small utility trailer or truck per housing unit, with a maximum capacity of one ton, shall be permitted, subject to the following:
Such vehicle shall be the property of an occupant of a unit, have a current license, and be stored within a garage or within a designated outside storage area, meeting the requirements of § 285-4.3E, when not in use.
There shall be no parking of recreational vehicles and commercial vehicles over one ton within a public street right-of-way or private road access easement for a period of time exceeding four hours in any given day, except as provided for in Subsection B(3)(a)[4] below.
A stored, parked or placed recreational vehicle may only be occupied or used for living purposes for a total of one week during any one calendar year. Occupancy of a recreational vehicle may only be permitted if the occupant of the recreational vehicle is an occupant of a unit, or a relative of an occupant of a unit, and the recreational vehicle is parked in such a manner that it complies with all other parking ordinances and regulations in effect at that location. At no time shall any such recreational vehicle have connections to water, gas or a sanitary sewer.
Commercial vehicles over one ton parked on the site are permitted only in conjunction with a valid building permit.
Boats, provided any such boats are stored within a designated outside storage area, meeting the requirements of § 285-4.3E, or in a garage, and on a trailer. Any such boat shall be owned by an occupant of a unit with current license.
Operable passenger vehicles owned by an occupant of a unit and licensed for the current year;
Waterfront uses in accordance with the provisions set forth in Article 17, Waterfront Provisions;
Home occupations within a residential dwelling, where all employees reside in the residence, and in accordance with Article 19, General Provisions;
Reception antennas (including satellite dishes and shortwave radio antennas) for noncommercial use in the rear yards of multiple-family residential districts, provided that such antennas conform to the standards set forth in Article 19, General Provisions; and
A building containing recreation facilities, meeting rooms, and other services for the exclusive use of occupants of the multiple-family development of which it is a part and their gratuitous guests, when separated a minimum separation of 50 feet from any residential structures, and in conformance with all applicable bulk and area requirements, off-street parking requirements and loading requirements.
Special land uses. The following uses shall be permitted as special land uses in the multiple-family residential districts subject to the standards and requirements set forth herein and subject to the standards and approval requirements set forth in Article 22, Special Land Use Review.
Convalescent or nursing homes shall be subject to the following provisions:
Boat clubs shall provide a continuous obscuring wall or landscaped screen to buffer off-street parking and boat dry dock storage from any adjacent land used for residential purposes meeting the requirements of Article 13, Landscaping, Screening and Walls.
State-licensed adult foster care small and large group homes (seven to 12 adults) separated at least 1,500 feet from any other state-licensed care facility (measured in any direction from the property line).
State-licensed group child day-care homes (seven to 12 unrelated children/private residence) subject to the following:
Accessory buildings and uses customarily incidental to the above special land uses.
285-4.3 Required conditions.
Public access and vehicular circulation.
All multiple-family developments shall have direct access onto a public street, unless the Planning Commission approves indirect access. Indirect access onto a public street may be permitted where the Planning Commission finds that emergency access would be adequate, traffic safety would not be compromised, the traffic would not cause undue disruption to adjacent single-family neighborhoods and adequate provisions have been made regarding maintenance of the access.
Each residential building within a multiple-family development shall have convenient access to a public street or private road meeting the standards of Chapter 205, Roads and Driveways, of the Municipal Code, or access drive. Such streets and drives shall provide adequate access for emergency and safety vehicles.
[Amended 2-22-2002
All streets, roads and access drives shall be designed and constructed in accordance with the standards of the Wayne County Office of Public Services and approved by the Township Engineer.
Architectural standards. All multiple-family developments shall meet the following architectural standards. In determining the appropriateness of buildings, design elements shall be evaluated in relation to existing and proposed surrounding buildings and uses.
Building mass, height, bulk and width-to-height ratio shall be similar in scale and proportionate to surrounding structures within 500 feet.
Buildings shall possess architectural variety but enhance the overall cohesive neighborhood character. All buildings shall provide architectural features, details and ornaments such as arches, colonnades, cornices or porches. Location, size and types of architectural projections such as porches or awnings shall be compatible with other structures within 500 feet.
Rooflines and materials shall be consistent with the surrounding neighborhood character. Building materials on the front facade shall be primarily brick, glass, stone or wood. The approximate size, orientation and spacing shall match that of buildings on adjacent lots.
Signs and other site features shall be designed and located on the site so that the proposed development is aesthetically pleasing and harmonious with nearby developments. Developments are required to provide site features such as decorative entry signs, ornamental lighting and/or pedestrian furniture.
At least 25% of individual garages on residential units shall be side entry or recessed at least 10 feet behind the front building line (living area).
Common open space.
Not less than 500 square feet of common open space shall be provided per dwelling unit. Such open space shall not include unusable land, such as regulated wetlands. It may include land in a designated floodplain.
Common open space shall be located conveniently in relation to the dwelling units it is intended to serve.
Recreational uses within the required open space shall be provided in consideration of the age and life-style of expected occupants. Open space may include playground and park space, play equipment, tennis courts, shuffleboard courts, basketball courts, and similar facilities. Automobile parking for these recreational uses may not be counted towards the total required open space area for a development.
Location and design of landscaping and pedestrian areas shall contribute to the continuation of the pedestrian and open space network within the immediate vicinity.
Sidewalks. Hard-surfaced sidewalks shall be provided throughout every multiple-family development so as to provide a complete pedestrian circulation system. Such sidewalks shall not be less than four feet in width nor less than four inches in thickness. All developments shall provide pedestrian linkages between public sidewalks and the building entrances.
Outside storage. The outside storage of materials, equipment and supplies customarily incidental to the principal use shall be allowed only when such storage areas are identified and approved during site plan review. Such storage areas shall be located in the non-required rear yard and screened from view from all roadways and adjacent uses. Screening shall consist of six-foot-high opaque screening or evergreen landscape screening in accordance with Article 13, Landscaping, Screening and Walls.
Site plan review. Submission of a site plan for review and approval by the Planning Commission shall be required, in accordance with the provisions set forth in Article 21, for all uses except a single-family residence or a subdivision plat. All single-family residential subdivision plats require review and approval under Chapter 238, Subdivision Control, of the Municipal Code.
Off-street parking and loading requirements. Parking and loading shall be provided as required in Article 12, Parking and Loading Requirements.
Landscaping and buffering.
Submission of a landscape plan, as part of or accompanying the site plan, to the Planning Commission for review and approval shall be required. The landscape plan shall specify plant materials and landscape treatments, based on requirements set forth in Article 13, Landscaping, Screening and Walls.
Grading requirements. Any grading, excavating, filling, land balancing, or similar activity shall require a grading permit and shall conform to the grading regulations set forth in Chapter 124, Grading, of the Municipal Code.
[Amended 2-22-2002
Sign regulations. All signs shall conform to the regulations set forth in Article 16, Sign Regulations.
Waterfront regulations. All development along the Detroit River and interior canals shall conform to the waterfront regulations set forth in Article 17, Waterfront Provisions.
Covered trash receptacles. All trash receptacles shall conform to the trash receptacle regulations set forth in Article 19, General Provisions.
285-4.4 Area and bulk regulations.
[Amended by Ord. No. 258, effective 4-18-1999; 6-13-2005 by Ord. No. 05-04]
Any structure or use of the land in a multiple-family residential district shall be subject to the following area and bulk regulations (subject to Notes 1 through 9):
Requirement | R-2 | R-3 | |
|---|---|---|---|
Minimum net land area per dwelling unit1,2 (square feet) | 10,000 | 5,000 | |
Minimum total lot area3 (square feet) | 16,000 | 16,000 | |
Minimum lot width (feet) | 100 | 100 | |
Minimum setbacks from lot lines (feet) | |||
Front yard | 40 | 40 | |
Side yard4,5 | 50 | 50 | |
Rear yard | 50 | 50 | |
Minimum internal setbacks (feet) | |||
From internal road6 | 25 | 25 | |
From parking lot7 | 15 | 15 | |
Between buildings | 308 | 308 | |
Natural feature setback9 (feet) | 25 | 25 | |
Minimum usable floor area per dwelling unit (square feet) | 1,000 | 900 | |
Maximum building length (feet) | 175 | 200 | |
Maximum height | |||
Feet | 35 | 35 | |
Stories | 2 | 2 | |
Notes pertaining to development regulations: | ||
1 | Density shall be calculated as the number of dwelling units situated on or to be developed per net acre of land. For purposes of calculating maximum density, only 25% of the acreage determined to be wetlands protected by the Goemaere-Anderson Wetland Protection Act, PA 203 of 1979, as amended, or the Township of Grosse Ile, shall be calculated toward the total site acreage. All open bodies of water, land within the one-hundred-year floodplain, public rights-of-way and areas within overhead utility line easements are excluded from calculation. | |
2 | All units shall have at least one living room, one bedroom, kitchen facilities, a storage closet and sanitary facilities. | |
3 | Every newly created lot must have a sufficient building envelope, exclusive of any regulated wetlands, to meet required zoning district setbacks, greenbelt buffers, off-street parking requirements and accessory uses as specified in this chapter. | |
4 | The minimum side yard shall be increased by one foot for each 10 feet or part thereof by which the length of the multiple-family building facing the side lot line exceeds 30 feet. | |
5 | The minimum side yard on a side facing a street shall not be less than the required minimum front yard setback. | |
6 | Setback from internal road shall be 25 feet or the height of the building whichever is greater. | |
7 | Parking lot setbacks are measured from the edge of a common parking lot, utilized for the parking of more than two vehicles, to the nearest line of the building. Parking lot setbacks do not apply to driveway approaches entering garages. | |
8 | For multiple-family developments where there are two or more buildings on the same parcel, the minimum required distance between two buildings shall be 30 feet or the combined height of the two buildings, whichever is greater. | |
9 | Natural feature setback shall be maintained in relation to the ordinary high-water mark of any pond, river or channel, and to the edge of any drainageway or regulated wetland. Only waterfront structures and appurtenances, as permitted in Article 17, Waterfront Provisions, may be located within the natural feature setback. This setback may be reduced by Planning Commission approval upon a determination that it is clearly in the public interest. In determining whether the setback reduction is in the public interest, the benefit which would reasonably be expected to accrue from the proposed development shall be balanced against the reasonably foreseeable detriments to the natural feature. The following general criteria shall be applied in undertaking this balancing test: | |
a. | The relative extent of the public and private need for the proposed activity. | |
b. | The availability of feasible and prudent alternative locations and methods to accomplish the expected benefits from the activity, including alternatives which are off-site or on other commercially available properties. | |
c. | The extent and permanence of the beneficial or detrimental effects which the proposed activity may have on the public and private use to which the area is suited, including the benefits the wetland provides. | |
d. | The probable impact of the proposal in relation to the cumulative effect created by other existing and anticipated activities in the watershed. | |
e. | The probable impact on recognized historic, cultural, scenic, ecological, or recreational values and on the public health or fish or wildlife. | |
f. | The size and quality of the wetland. | |
g. | Proximity to any waterway. | |
h. | Extent to which upland soil erosion adjacent to protected wetlands or drainageways is controlled. | |
i. | Economic value, both public and private, of the proposed land change to the general area. | |
j. | Findings of necessity for the proposed project which have been made by other state or local agencies. | |