Holland City Zoning Code
ARTICLE 39
10 Streets, Driveways and Sidewalks
Sec. 39-10.01 Intent.
[7-21-2021 by Ord. No. 1796]
A.
Intent. The intent of this article is to apply the City of Holland's adopted Complete Streets Resolution by providing street and sidewalk design standards for new developments, and to ensure that City-wide development creates the least amount of traffic congestion as possible.
B.
Connection between land use and transportation infrastructure. Land use and transportation are linked because land use development leads to more activity, which leads to the need for more streets and sidewalks to carry additional multimodal traffic, which leads to the need for additional driveways to access more properties, which then leads to more land use ability.
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Land uses and transportation infrastructure are also linked when maintaining, restructuring, or constructing streets, driveways, and sidewalks. Neighborhood and street corridor characteristics are established by the type of transportation infrastructure provided, the land uses permitted, and where structures are located.
High-traffic streets attract and are appropriate for intensive business uses, whereas lower-traffic, often narrower streets are more attractive and appropriate for residential uses. Streets designed to be safe and welcoming for pedestrians and bicyclists attract more mixed-use development, which supports walkable retail uses, while high-traffic, vehicle-centric streets attract vehicular land uses, such as drive-thrus and gas stations.
C.
Best practices. This article provides requirements that will ensure orderly development by applying best practices for site design, constructing new streets and driveways, and installing sidewalks on new streets and in the right-of-way of all street fronting properties.
Sec. 39-10.02 Site design.
[7-21-2021 by Ord. No. 1796]
A.
Intent. The intent of this section is to provide the basic requirements required for site design and site plan approval.
C.
Sidewalks along all property street frontages are required per the requirements of Section 39-10.04.
D.
Stub streets to property lines may be required by the approving authority for future public street connections between properties. These stub streets shall generally be located every 300 feet. That distance may be minimized or increased by the approving authority.
E.
Half-width streets shall be prohibited except where essential to the future development of a property or subdivision. Wherever a half-width street is adjacent to an undeveloped property or to a tract to be subdivided, the other half of the street shall be platted with a private easement within such property or tract.
F.
Traffic study requirement.
[Amended 5-3-2023 by Ord. No. 1835]
1.
A traffic study shall be conducted for any development expected to generate more than 100 peak hour trips or more than 750 average daily trips (ADT). See Section 39-5.05.
2.
The traffic study report shall be submitted to the City Engineer and the Community and Neighborhood Services Department for review at the time of site plan application. See Section 39-5.05.
3.
Review of reports shall be done by the City Engineer and may be reviewed by the City's Traffic Engineer Consultant. All fees associated with this review shall be the responsibility of the applicant.
4.
Infrastructure improvement determinations (on-site and adjacent to the site) shall be made by the City Engineer based on professional engineering practices, input from other City Departments, and recommendations of the traffic study. All infrastructure improvements shall be made at the same time the development is constructed, unless other scheduling arrangements are made with the City Engineer. All costs shall be paid for by the applicant.
5.
The City Engineer may require a traffic study for any other site plan application or may waive this requirement.
Sec. 39-10.03 General street requirements.
[7-21-2021 by Ord. No. 1796]
A.
Public and private streets.
1.
Street design plan shall be submitted with a site plan review proposing a new street that lays out the street realms and feature zones per Section 39-10.08.
2.
Public streets shall generally be required for all new streets providing access to five or more dwelling units and to any nonresidential use. See Section 39-10.07 and Section 39-10.08 for specific street design standards.
a.
Private street waiver shall only be granted by the Planning Commission when the street provides access within a single lot that will be subdivided into a site condominium, and there will be suitable provisions for the lots to maintain, repair, and replace the streets through a private association, unless otherwise recommended by the City Engineer and the Community and Neighborhood Services Department. Private streets providing access to over four dwelling units shall be built to public street standards. See Section 39-10.03B.
3.
All streets shall be designed to allow sufficient access for emergency vehicles by providing a minimum width of 20 feet, exclusive of shoulders. Streets shall be a minimum of width of 26 feet, exclusive of shoulders, wherever a fire hydrant is located. Compliance with minimum widths for streets shall be determined by the Fire Marshal.
[Amended 5-3-2023 by Ord. No. 1835]
4.
Public street connections. All new streets shall connect to an existing public street or be part of a new street network that connects to an existing public street, unless the only available street connection to the property is a private street.
B.
Public street standards.
1.
Right-of-Way Width Table. See Section 39-10.07, Street classifications. These widths may be decreased in certain contexts if approved by the City Engineer.
Residential Streets (feet) | Commercial, Mixed Use Corridor, and Industrial Streets (feet) | Urban Streets (feet) |
|---|---|---|
66 to 86 | 86 to 120 | 66 to 100 |
2.
Minimum Cross Section Construction Requirements Table.
[Amended 5-3-2023 by Ord. No. 1835]
Construction Requirement | Local Street (inches) | Major Street (inches) |
|---|---|---|
Sand subbase* | 12 | 18 |
Aggregate base* | 6 | 6 |
Asphalt | 4.5 | 6 |
* Subject to change based on geotechnical report and condition of the native soils. |
C.
Street and right-of-way elements.
1.
Dead ends prohibited. Dead-end streets are prohibited unless the applicant demonstrates to the satisfaction of the approving authority there is a physical, legal, or environmental preservation reason why a dead-end street is required. If constructed, dead ends shall end in a cul-de-sac or a hammer head, the sizes of which shall be determined based on the context by the City Engineer and the approving authority.
2.
Gated communities prohibited. All streets shall be open and available to the general public for access to the properties served by the street. Streets shall not be barricaded, gated, or blocked in any way to prevent access by the general public.
3.
Street names. All street names shall be approved by the City's Assessing Office.
4.
Encroachments. Encroachments of structures or landscaping on a street, alley or sidewalk are not permitted. See Section 32-3 of the Code of Ordinances.
5.
Suspending objects over public right-of-way. Nothing shall be suspended over any sidewalk or street unless expressly authorized in UDO or approved as a revocable license agreement (RLA) from City Council.
6.
Street vacations. Proposed street vacations shall be reviewed and approved by City Council using the processes outlined in Section 39-12.10D.3.
7.
Right-of-way permits. Repair or modification to any street, sidewalk, crosswalk, driveway approach, or curb, and excavations or openings in or under any street, alley, or public place shall require a right-of-way permit from the Transportation Services Department prior to commencing such work. See Sections 32-5 and 32-15 of the Code of Ordinances.
8.
Future right-of-way. The Planning Commission may designate sections of street maintained by the City of Holland for "future right-of-way" to accommodate street widening, provision of infrastructure, such as a sidewalk or nonmotorized pathway, and/or to address safety concerns. The future right-of-way line designated by the Planning Commission shall be considered the front property line for all parcels included in the future right-of-way area for the purposes of UDO. The minimum length of any street corridor designated for future right-of-way shall be 300 feet. Prior to designating a future right-of-way area, the Planning Commission shall hold a public hearing, as described in Article 39-12, and notify, by mail, all property owners within the future right-of-way area at least 15 days in advance of the public hearing.
D.
City Engineer and Ottawa County Road Commission standards. For all aspects of street design and construction not described in UDO, the standards of the Holland City Engineer and the standards of the Ottawa County Road Commission shall govern.
[Amended 5-3-2023 by Ord. No. 1835]
E.
Variances from this article. The Board of Appeals (BOA) shall have the authority to grant variances from this article.
Sec. 39-10.04 Sidewalk requirements.
[7-21-2021 by Ord. No. 1796]
A.
Sidewalks shall be installed within the right-of-way along the street frontage of a property whenever a site plan approval is required or when a residential dwelling with one to four units is built and along both sides of a newly constructed street.
1.
Exceptions.
a.
Sidewalks may be permitted to be installed on private property with a public access easement granted to the City of Holland if right-of-way is not available.
b.
Sidewalk waiver. The sidewalk requirements of Section 39-10.04A shall only be waived by the approving authority and the City Engineer if a written request is provided by the applicant and after the following considerations and findings have been made:
1)
The location of the existing sidewalk and its proximity to the sidewalk to be constructed.
2)
The existence of grades, open ditches, and topographical features of the lot which would render the sidewalk impractical, constitute an unreasonable hardship, or would be a deterrent to the preservation and enjoyment of a substantial property right of the applicant.
3)
Special circumstances or conditions, including but not limited to lot size, configuration, and proximity of inconsistent uses which would mitigate against the strict construction of sidewalks by the City, private property owners, or developers within reasonable proximity of the residence.
4)
The granting of the waiver would not be detrimental to the public health, safety, or general welfare and would not create a precedent which would prevent the enforcement of the UDO for similar conditions or situations in the area in which the property is located.
5)
A waiver not limited by a specific duration shall be deemed unspecified in length, but shall not be considered a permanent waiver of sidewalk requirements nor revoke in any way the right of the City to order, install, or assess for sidewalks in accordance with other sections of the Code of Ordinances upon a determination that conditions are necessary for the construction of sidewalks in accordance with public need, health, safety, and general welfare.
6)
In permitting a waiver, conditions of approval may be imposed that are necessary to meet the intent of this subsection or to preserve the public health, safety, and general welfare.
B.
Sidewalks shall be designed as follows:
[Amended 5-3-2023 by Ord. No. 1835]
1.
Six feet wide minimum (eight feet wide minimum in the F-CDT Subdistrict).
2.
Included on site plans with dimension lines and thickness.
3.
Constructed four inches thick for pedestrian areas, six inches thick for driveway crossings and vehicular loading areas. Sidewalks crossing driveways shall be poured separately from the driveway and driveway approach. Reinforcements shall not be included unless required by loading criteria and approved by the City Engineer
4.
Sidewalk cross slope shall not exceed 2%, shall be sloped toward the roadway, and set at an elevation that is above the adjacent curb head.
5.
Compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Act standards.
6.
Extended into a parking lot with a marked pedestrian access strip leading to the building entrance.
7.
Installed by a concrete/sidewalk contractor.
C.
Sidewalk hazards.
1.
Snow, ice, dirt, rubbish, obstructions, and other nuisances shall not remain on sidewalks for more than 24 hours.
2.
The owner or occupant of the abutting premises shall be responsible to remove these nuisances and shall put salt, sawdust, sand or other abrasive on ice within 12 hours of its formation on the sidewalk.
Sec. 39-10.05 Driveway requirements.
[7-21-2021 by Ord. No. 1796]
A.
Intent. The intent of this section is to regulate orderly development and minimize traffic congestion by applying best practice standards to regulate how many driveways (curb cuts) are permitted, driveway width, and distances between curb cuts on streets that access residential dwellings with one to four units (residential curb cuts) and on streets that access all other uses (other use curb cuts).
B.
General requirements.
1.
A driveway or parking space shall be made accessible to a public street, or to a private street if approved by the approving authority.
3.
Driveway width measurements shall be made at the right-of-way line.
4.
Driveway flares. An additional flare of three feet for residentially used properties and an additional flare of five feet for nonresidentially used properties are allowed in additional to the maximum width at the right-of-way line.
5.
Permit required. A right-of-way permit shall be obtained from the Transportation Services Department prior to connecting a driveway to any public street, alley or public place.
C.
Residential driveways.
1.
Driveway Requirement Table. Width restrictions are measured at the right-of-way line for purposes of this section.
Lot Width (feet) | Number of Driveways | Maximum Driveway Width (feet) | Minimum Distance Between Driveways (feet) |
|---|---|---|---|
Less than 40 | 1 | 10 | N/A |
40 up to 50 | 1 | 20 | 18 |
2 | 10 each | 18 | |
50 up to 100 | 1 | 20 | 25 |
2 | 20 | 25 | |
3 | 10 | 25 | |
Greater than 100 | 1 | 20 | 30 |
2 | 20 | 30 | |
3 | 10 | 30 | |
More than 3 (up to 1 per 50 feet of frontage) | 10 | 30 |
2.
Distance from intersections. The City Engineer may prohibit curb cuts within a given distance of an intersection to ensure safety at the intersection. The City Engineer shall make such determinations on an intersection-by-intersection basis.
3.
Functional boundary areas. Residential driveways shall not be located within 50 feet of the right-of-way line of an intersection street unless all of the lot frontage is located within the functional boundary area. If all the lot frontage is located within the functional boundary area, the residential driveway shall be located as far as possible from the adjacent street intersection.
D.
Commercial, industrial, mixed-use, and multifamily development driveways.
1.
Driveway Requirement Table. Driveways shall be designed to the latest edition of the Michigan Department of Transportation Administrative Rules regulating driveways, banners, and parades. These requirements may be modified by the City Engineer and the approving authority.
[Amended 5-3-2023 by Ord. No. 1835]
Street Type | Driveway Spacing on Same Side of Street (feet) | Driveway Spacing on Opposite Sides of Street (feet) | Driveway Distance from Intersections (feet) |
|---|---|---|---|
Two-lane street | 100 | 100 | 150 |
Multilane street | 150 | 250 | 250 |
2.
Driveway spacing on the same side of the street is measured from edge of driveway to edge of driveway.
3.
Driveway alignment across from each other. Driveways shall either be aligned with those directly across the street or offset a sufficient distance from those across the street to achieve the minimum spacing standards as measured from center line to center line. See the table in Section 39-10.05D.1.
4.
Access management. The City of Holland encourages, and may require, cross access connections to driveways since driveway access points are the main location of crashes and congestion, and their location and spacing directly affect the safety and functional integrity of the street network.
Access Management and Cross Access | |
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5.
Acceleration and deceleration lanes. Driveways shall not be constructed along acceleration or deceleration lanes and tapers connected to a public road unless no other reasonable access point is available, and if approved by the City Engineer.
6.
Turns limited or prohibited. The City Engineer and approving authority may prohibit or limit turns out of driveways and/or require driveway geometrics to aid traffic circulation.
7.
Minimum Driveway Sight Distances Table.
Existing Street Speed Limit (miles per hour) | Driveway Safe Sight Distance (feet) |
|---|---|
25 | 300 |
30 | 360 |
35 | 420 |
40 | 480 |
45 | 540 |
50 | 600 |
55 | 660 |
8.
Ottawa County Road Commission procedures and regulations for permitted activities. All additional regulations specified in this document shall be met unless otherwise approved by the City Engineer and approving authority.
Sec. 39-10.06 Street network requirements by zone district.
[7-21-2021 by Ord. No. 1796]
A.
Intent. The intent of this section is to ensure the orderly development of the City of Holland's street network by requiring specific standards to be met in determining the location of new street intersections and how many streets can be connected to an existing street. These standards, in addition to the driveway and curb cut standards in Section 39-10.05, are essential to minimize additional traffic congestion.
B.
Context sensitive. These zone district specific standards follow the context sensitive planning approach described in Section 39-1.04A.
C.
Street network standards. These requirements shall be met for all properties that have a minimum of 300 feet in any dimension that propose new streets. All standards shall be rounded to the nearest whole number.
Zone District | New Street Intersection Distance from Existing Intersections  (feet) | Number of Street Connections to Existing Streets (based on width of property line along existing street)  |
|---|---|---|
LDR | 0 or 150 | 1 per 300 feet |
CNR | 0 or 150 | 1 per 300 feet |
MDR | 0 or 150 | 1 per 300 feet |
TNR | 0 or 150 | 1 per 300 feet |
HDR | 0 or 150 | 1 per 300 feet |
MHR |  | |
NMU | 0 or 150 | 1 per 300 feet |
CMU | 0 or 300 | 1 per 600 feet |
RMU | 0 or 150 | 1 per 300 feet |
GMU  | 0 or 150 | 1 per 300 feet |
ED | 0 or 150 | 1 per 300 feet |
I | 0 or 300 | 1 per 600 feet |
A | 0 or 300 | 1 per 600 feet |
OS | 0 or 300 | 1 per 600 feet |
F | 0 or 150 | 1 per 300 feet |
PUD | Determined in PUD agreement | Determined in PUD agreement |
NOTES: | ||
| GMU Greenfield Mixed Use Zone District. Public streets shall be required to establish a street network and connections within and through properties and tie into the internal street network. The Waverly Subarea Plan shall be used to guide the location of these public streets. If the adjacent property the street is proposed to connect to is undeveloped, a stub street shall be constructed. | |
 | "0 feet" shall mean extending an existing street across an intersection where it currently ends, creating a four-way intersection. See graphic to the right. | 0 Feet from Existing Street  |
| See Section 39-2.10. | |
 | The street may be replaced by a pedestrian walkway or nonmotorized pathway, if approved by the approving authority. The walkway or pathway shall be exempt from the street design requirements of this article but shall be a minimum of 26 feet wide to allow for emergency vehicle access, unless determined otherwise by the Fire Marshal and approving authority. | |
Sec. 39-10.07 Street classifications for street design standards.
[7-21-2021 by Ord. No. 1796]
A.
Intent. Street design standards and intentionally planning and constructing the street realms per the requirements of Section 39-10.08, is necessary to ensure best practices are used to preserve, enhance, and establish character in neighborhoods and along corridors. These street design standards are organized by street classifications based on the City of Holland's Act 51 Map and its differentiation between major and local streets. The following define each street classification used in the tables located in Sections 39-10.08D through F and provide examples.
B.
Residential streets. Residential streets shall be defined as those where the surrounding properties are predominantly zoned LDR, CNR, MDR, TNR, HDR, or MHR. They are characterized by slow speeds, pedestrians, activity in front yards, and high levels of bicycle usage.
C.
Commercial, mixed-use corridor, and industrial streets. These streets shall be defined as those where the surrounding properties are predominantly zoned CMU, I, A, and, for major streets only, GMU. They are characterized by high traffic volumes, relatively high speeds, truck traffic, multilane configurations, and dedicated turning lanes.
1.
Major commercial, mixed-use corridor, and industrial streets. Examples: Michigan Avenue, South Washington Avenue, Waverly Avenue, 48th Street, and 64th Street. Highways maintained by the Michigan Department of Transportation, such as US-31, also fit in this category.
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2.
Local commercial, mixed-use corridor, and industrial streets. Examples: Lincoln Avenue, Ottawa Avenue, Century Lane (when lined with nonresidential buildings), Industrial Avenue, 40th Street (east of US-31), and Veterans Drive.
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D.
Urban streets. Urban streets shall be defined as those where the surrounding properties are predominantly zoned TNR, NMU, RMU, GMU, and F for only local streets. These streets are characterized by slow speeds, on-street parking (where allowed), high pedestrian activity, frequent intersections/crosswalks, and, in some cases, high bicycle usage.
