§ 28.00. ACCESSORY BUILDINGS AND STRUCTURES.  


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  • Accessory buildings and structures, except as otherwise permitted in this ordinance, shall be subject to the following regulations:
    A. Where the accessory building is structurally attached to a principal building, except as provided in section 28.10, it shall conform to all regulations of this ordinance applicable to the principal building.
    B. A detached accessory building or structure shall not be located in the front or the required side yards except as provided in this division. No detached accessory building (excluding pools) shall be located closer than ten feet to any principal building or deck. Detached accessory buildings are permitted to be located in the required rear yard provided they are not closer than three feet to any lot line. In the case of a through lot, a detached accessory building or structure shall not be located in any required rear yard that abuts the front yard of an adjacent lot. In the case of a corner lot, accessory buildings (excluding swimming pools and sheds) shall not be located in either required front yard. Swimming pools, and sheds not exceeding 200 square feet, when located on a corner lot, may extend ten feet into the side street front yard setback, provided there is no paved access to the property line or curb cut. Sheds not exceeding 200 square feet, when located on a corner lot which has a six feet sight-obscuring privacy fence or six feet high sight-obscuring landscaping along the front setback line of the side street front yard, may extend 27 feet into the side street front yard setback of the corner lot, or 37 feet into the side street front yard setback of a corner lot if on a major thoroughfare, provided there is no paved access to the property line or curb cut. If a shed is installed at a location which is more than 10 feet into the front yard setback of the side street front yard of the corner lot as a result of the existence of a 6' sight-obscuring privacy fence or six feet high sight-obscuring landscaping, a six feet sight-obscuring privacy fence or six feet high sight-obscuring landscaping shall be maintained at all times. A notice of this condition shall be recorded against the property at the time the permit is issued for the shed encroaching into the front yard setback whenever the sight-obscuring fence or landscaping is required due to the placement of the shed within the required yard. In no instance shall an accessory structure be located within a dedicated easement.
    C. Accessory buildings and structures shall not exceed one story, or 15 feet in height, in any residential or commercial zoning district. Accessory buildings with a floor area over 50 square feet shall be installed upon a concrete slab floor that is at least 3½ inches thick and in compliance with all applicable requirements of the Michigan Building Code or Michigan Residential Building Code. Sheds shall not exceed ten feet in height on a lot of one-fourth acre or less located in any residential zoning district. Sheds shall not have openings or doors exceeding six feet in width.
    D. No accessory building shall be constructed prior to the construction of the principal building, unless specifically approved by the Zoning Board of Appeals.
    E. The following requirements shall apply to accessory buildings located on one family zoned parcels of one quarter an acre or less:
    1. One garage, either attached or detached, is permitted;
    2. For parcels with an attached garage, one shed, not exceeding 200 square feet in area, shall be permitted;
    3. The total square footage of a detached accessory building shall not exceed 700 square feet.
    F. The following requirements shall apply to accessory buildings located on one family zoned parcels of more than one-quarter acre and less than one-half acre:
    1. Freestanding accessory buildings including but not more than two garages may be permitted;
    2. For parcels with an attached garage, one accessory building is permitted;
    3. The total square footage of all detached accessory buildings shall not exceed 1,000 square feet;
    4. The minimum rear and side yard setbacks of accessory buildings exceeding 900 square feet in size shall be 20 feet.
    G. The following requirements shall apply to accessory buildings located on one family zoned parcels that exceed one-half acre in total area:
    1. For each additional one-quarter acre or portion thereof over one-half acre, an additional 200 square feet of accessory buildings shall be permitted. The total square footage of all detached accessory buildings shall not exceed 2,000 square feet;
    2. The minimum rear and side yard setbacks of accessory buildings exceeding 900 square feet in size shall be 20 feet.
    H. Satellite dish antennas and other television and radio antennas/receivers may be permitted as accessory structures in any zoning district, subject to the following provisions:
    1. A satellite dish antenna that is designed to receive direct satellite service, including direct-to-home satellite service, that is one meter or less in diameter shall be permitted without a zoning compliance permit, unless it is attached to a mast of greater than 12 feet in height. If the mast to which it is attached exceeds 12 feet in height, then special approval land use by the Planning Commission under Article 25 shall be required;
    2. A satellite dish antenna that is designed to receive video programming services via multi- point distribution services, including multichannel multi-point distribution services, instruction television fixed services and local multipoint services and that is one meter or less in diameter or diagonal measurement shall be permitted without a zoning compliance permit, unless it is attached to a mast of greater than 12 feet in height. If the mast to which it is attached exceeds 12 feet in height, then special approval land use by the Planning Commission under Article 25 shall be required;
    3. A conforming commercial earth station shall be permitted without a zoning compliance permit;
    4. An antenna that is designed to receive private radio or television broadcast signals which is less than 12 feet in height when installed shall be permitted without a zoning compliance permit. If the antenna exceeds 12 feet in height, then special approval land use by the Planning Commission under Article 25 shall be required. Such a structure shall not, however, be erected so as to injure the roof covering, and when removed from the roof, the roof covering shall be repaired to maintain weather and water tightness. The installation of any antenna structure mounted on the roof of a building shall not be erected nearer to the lot line than the total height of the antenna structure above the roof, nor shall such antenna structure be erected near electric power lines or encroach upon any street or other public space;
    5. Satellite earth stations more than one meter in diameter located in a residential district shall require special land use approval by the Planning Commission under Article 25;
    6. Satellite earth stations more than two meters in diameter located in an area where commercial or industrial uses are generally permitted shall require special approval land use by the Planning Commission under Article 25;
    7. An antenna that is designed to receive private radio or television broadcast signals shall require a special approval land use by the Planning Commission under Article 25 if the height exceeds 12 feet;
    8. An antenna of any type or size which is to be erected on a structure that is located in a district that is listed or eligible to be listed in the National Register of Historic Places shall require special approval land use by the Planning Commission under Article 25;
    9. Any approved structure shall be subject to compliance with all applicable regulations, including but not limited to the requirements under the BOCA Building Code;
    10. The Zoning Board of Appeals may modify the requirements of this section as authorized in section 30.02C5.
    The application for a special approval land use or variance shall include construction drawings showing the proposed method of installation, including details on foundations and anchoring, and a site plan or plot plan showing the proposed location. Any structure covered by this section shall not be located in any front or required side yard setback.
    I. In nonresidential zoning districts, accessory buildings may occupy any of the ground area which the principal building is permitted to cover. Accessory buildings in nonresidential zoning districts that abut nonresidential zoned properties shall be regulated according to the provisions of section 28.00, A-G. Minor accessory buildings, such as buildings for guard shelters and gate houses, may be located in the front or side yard in nonresidential districts, upon site plan approval. All such buildings or structures shall be architecturally and aesthetically compatible with the principal building. All such devices shall be located and landscaped to reduce the visual impact from surrounding properties and from public streets.
    (Ord. No. 278-G, §§ 16-19, 9-18-90; Ord. No. 278-Q, § 10, 10-3-95; Ord. No. 278-R, § 14, 8-20-96; Ord. No. 278-U, § 14, 1-6-98; Ord. No. 278-X, §§ 16-19, 4-6-99; Ord. No. 278-AA, § 10, 3-20-01; Ord. No. 278-DD, § 11, 7-6-04; Ord. No. 278-EE, § 7, 8, 10-5-04; Ord. No. 278-MM, § 4, 10-21-08; Ord. No. 278-NN, § 34, 1-6-09; Ord. No. 278-RR, § 7, 10-18-11)