(A) Intent and purpose. The Village Council finds that commercial, industrial, multi-family, and certain other uses in the village have a substantial impact upon the character of the community, and upon traffic, utilities, and property values all affecting the public health, safety, and general welfare. In order to foster the attractiveness of the community and to enhance and preserve its desirability as a place to live and to work, preserve property values, and in order to provide an efficient road and utility network, ensure the movement of traffic, implement comprehensive planning and better serve the public health, safety, and general welfare, it is determined that site plans for the uses shall be required and reviewed according to the provisions of this section.
(B) Site plan review.
(1) Uses subject to site plan review. Except as provided in division (B)(2) of this section, no nonresidential principal building shall be erected, moved, externally altered, added to, or have any change in use which would affect its approved off-street parking, loading, landscaping, or signage, and no building or land shall be used nor any building, grading, or occupancy permit shall be issued except in accordance with a site plan approved under this section. Specifically, site plan review shall apply to all new construction, including building additions and accessory uses, for the following:
(a) All uses permitted by right in the following districts:
1. Commercial (B-1, B-2, and HC);
2. Mixed use (VC);
3. Industrial (M-1); and
4. Multiple-family (R-M1).
(c) All planned unit developments.
(d) All platted subdivisions developed pursuant to the Land Division Act, Public Act 288 of 1967, being M.C.L.A. 560.101 through 560.293, as amended.
(e) All site condo, condominium subdivisions, and other condominium projects developed pursuant to the Condominium Act (M.C.L.A. 559.101 et seq.).
(f) All developments in wetlands and 100-year floodplains, including single-family homes, for which a permit is required by the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality.
(g) For any other use or development for which the submission of a site plan is required by this chapter.
(2) Exceptions. The site plan review requirements of this section do not apply to single-family homes and associated accessory structures unless they fall under a category in division (B)(1) of this section.
(3) Administrative review. The site plan review requirements of this section may be waived in whole or in part in favor of administrative review and approval by the Zoning Administrator for projects which have limited potential of causing serious impacts on the land in question, the neighboring properties, or the community as a whole. The Zoning Administrator may seek the input of the Village Planner, the Village Engineer, and others as necessary prior to any administrative approval. The Zoning Administrator shall report all administrative review actions each month to the Village Council with detailed information as to the nature of the application and the criteria upon which the decision to approve the application administratively was made.
(C) Reviewing authority. Site plans shall be reviewed and approved, approved with conditions, or disapproved by the Zoning Administrator or Planning Commission as provided in this section. The authority shall include review by the Zoning Administrator, special committees, or other outside experts and other public agencies, in accordance with procedures, requirements, and standards of this chapter.
(D) Conceptual development site plan review. Applicants are encouraged to submit a conceptual development site plan for review by the Zoning Administrator and Village Planner. The intent of the conceptual site plan review is to minimize errors, miscalculations, or misconceptions prior to the submission for preliminary site plan review. This procedure is intended to be for informational purposes only and shall not necessarily bear directly upon later reviews. Proposed new construction on parcels of land which are undeveloped or are to be redeveloped, or which will be developed in phases, are especially encouraged to seek this review prior to the submission for preliminary site plan review. The purpose of this is to indicate the general design and layout of the project and to demonstrate the ability to be approved as a site plan before substantial sums of money have been spent on design work.
(E) Site plan review procedures. Applications requiring site plan review shall follow the following process:
(1) Applications for site plan review shall be submitted to the Village Zoning Administrator.
(2) The Zoning Administrator, Village Planner, Village Engineer, and others at the request of the Planning Commission shall review the site plan and submit written comments to the Planning Commission. The Planning Commission shall approve, approve with conditions, or deny the site plan, based on compliance of the site plan with this chapter. If denied, reasons for the denial shall be cited. If approved, the applicant may submit an application for the necessary building permits.
(3) Applications for site plan approval for all projects (minor and major) shall consist of the following, unless waived by the Zoning Administrator when the information would serve no substantially beneficial purpose:
(a) An application form and appropriate fee as adopted by the Planning Commission.
(b) Ten reproducible copies of the site plan, no larger than 11 inches by 17 inches, with an appropriate text and graphic scale, shall be submitted with the application.
(c) Legal description, lot line dimensions and bearings, tax parcel number(s), certificate of survey, and address of the site.
(d) Proof of ownership, name and address of property owner of record and the developer. Include telephone and fax numbers.
(e) Existing development:
1. Zoning and property information:
a. Zoning district of site and all adjacent property;
b. Land use of the site and adjacent property;
c. Proposed use of site; and
d. Lot area, in acres and/or square feet, excluding existing road rights-of-way as well as that in proposed rights-of-way.
2. Existing deed restrictions, if any.
3. Location and outline of all existing development on the site, such as buildings, drives, parking areas, wells, septic tanks, drain fields, utilities, poles, ditches, underground storage tanks, above-ground storage areas, and the like. Include the location of any existing floor drains.
4. Location, width, and purpose of existing easements.
5. Location of adjacent buildings, drives and parking areas.
(f) Proposed development:
1. Ground floor and total floor area to be constructed.
2. Floor coverage ratio (ground floor area/lot area).
3. Floor area ratio (total floor area divided by net lot area).
4. Number and types of dwelling units by number of bedrooms and density for residential projects.
5. Building height, in feet and number of floors.
6. Number and type of buildings.
7. Required yards and transition strips (delineated on the plan).
8. Number of parking spaces required and provided with supporting calculations.
9. Size of parking spaces and parking lot aisles.
10. Amount of recreational and open space facilities to be provided.
11. Proposed deed restrictions, if any.
12. Proposed construction and completion dates.
13. Projected number of employees by shift.
(g) General proposed utility layout for sanitary sewer, water, lighting, and storm water systems.
(h) Location and screening of trash storage areas.
(i) The location of any floor drains in proposed structures on the site. The point of discharge for all drains and pipes shall be specified on the site plan.
(j) The location and elevations of existing water courses and water bodies, including county drains and manmade surface drainageways, floodplains, and wetlands.
(k) Location of existing and proposed public water mains, public and private drinking water wells, monitoring wells, irrigation wells, test wells, or wells used for industrial processes.
(l) Inventory of hazardous substances to be stored, used or generated on-site, presented in a format acceptable to the Village Fire Chief (include CAS numbers). (CAS number = Chemical Abstract Service Number. This is a unique number for every chemical established by a Columbus, Ohio, organization which indexes information published in Chemical Abstracts by the American Chemical Society).
(m) Description and location for any proposed above-ground and below-ground storage facilities.
(n) Descriptions of type of operations proposed for the project and drawings showing size, location, and description of any proposed interior or exterior areas of structures for storing, using, loading or unloading of hazardous substances, hazardous wastes, and/or polluting materials.
(o) Delineation of areas on the site which are known or suspected to be contaminated, together with a report on the status of cleanup or closure.
(p) Existing topography, at two-foot contour intervals.
(q) Location and type of natural features on or adjacent to the site, such as woods, streams, marshes, wetlands, fence rows, individual trees of six inches or larger caliper when not located in a woods, 100-year flood hazard area depicted in plan view.
(r) Soils information, for sites utilizing onsite septic tanks and drainfields, location and extent of soils that are unbuildable in their natural state because of organic content or water table.
(s) Location and overall dimensions of existing structures and drives.
(t) Surface type and width of streets adjacent to site, and surface elevations of existing street at the intersection of each proposed driveway or street.
(u) Existing utilities serving the site location, size, inverts, fire hydrants, gatewells, manholes, and catch basins, location and elevations of ditches, culverts, and bridges adjacent to the site, location of utility poles and lines, and location and size of natural gas lines and appurtenances.
(v) Completion of the environmental permits checklist on the form provided by the Zoning Administrator.
(F) Approval of the site plan is valid for a period of one year. If a final site plan for a major development project, or any phase of a major development project, has not been submitted during that period, the approval of the preliminary site plan shall be void. Preliminary site plans which expire shall be required to be resubmitted and be processed as original applications.
(G) The Planning Commission may refer the site plan to a special committee or to the Downtown Development Authority for additional review and recommendation prior to final review.
(H) Other requirements:
(1) For uses having frontage and/or access on a regional arterial, the number, design and location of access driveways and other provisions for vehicular circulation shall comply with the requirements of the State Department of Transportation or the County Road Commission as applicable.
(2) Landscaping, fences, screens, landscape buffers, and greenbelts shall be provided and designed in accordance with the provisions of § 153.081(F).
(3) All elements of the site plan shall be designed to take into account the site's topography, the size and type of plot, the character of adjoining property and the type and size of buildings. The site shall be developed so as not to impede the normal and orderly development or improvement of surrounding property for uses permitted in this chapter.
(4) The landscape shall be preserved in its natural state, insofar as practical, by removing only those areas of vegetation or making those alterations to the topography which are reasonably necessary to develop the site in accordance with the requirements of this chapter.
(5) The site plan shall provide reasonable visual and sound privacy for all dwelling units. Fences, walks, barriers, and landscaping shall be used, as appropriate, to accomplish these purposes.
(6) All buildings or groups of buildings shall be arranged so as to permit necessary emergency vehicle access as required by the Fire Department.
(7) A pedestrian circulation system which is separated from the vehicular circulation system may be required. In order to ensure public safety, special pedestrian measures, such as sidewalks, crosswalks, crossing signals, and other such facilities may be required in the vicinity of schools, playgrounds, shopping areas and other uses which generate a considerable amount of pedestrian traffic.
(8) The arrangement of public or common ways for vehicle and pedestrian circulation shall be connected to existing or planned streets and pedestrian or bicycle pathways in the area. Streets and drives which are part of an existing or planned street pattern serving adjacent development shall be of a width appropriate to the traffic volume they will carry and shall have a dedicated right-of-way equal to that required in the standards of the County Road Commission.
(9) All streets shall be developed in accordance with Chapter 152 and County Road Commission specifications.
(10) Appropriate measures shall be taken to ensure that removal of surface waters will not adversely affect neighboring properties or the public storm drainage system. Provisions shall be made to accommodate storm water, prevent erosion and the formation of dust. The use of detention/retention ponds may be required. Surface water on all paved areas shall be collected at intervals so that it will not obstruct the flow of vehicular or pedestrian traffic or create puddles in paved areas. All on-site storm drainage facilities shall be developed in accordance with the specifications of the County Drain Commissioner's office and/or the Village Engineer, as applicable.
(11) Exterior lighting shall be arranged so that it is deflected away from adjacent properties and so that it does not impede the vision of traffic along adjacent streets. Flashing or intermittent lights shall not be permitted.
(12) Properties abutting streets which have right-of-way deficiencies, shall provide additional right-of-way to the appropriate agency as determined by the Village Council. The additional right-of-way shall be provided to the appropriate agency via written documentation prior to final site plan approval by the Zoning Administrator.
(13) Safe, suitable, and adequate access shall be provided. The following factors shall be considered when determining whether safe and adequate access exists:
(a) Generally developments generating more than 500 trips per day shall be required to
provide a second access point. Trip generation estimates shall be based upon equations/rates provided in the most recent edition of the Institute of Transportation Engineers (ITE) Trip Generation Manual.
(b) Topography and natural features surrounding the subject parcel shall be considered.
(c) The provision of outlots, stub streets, and the like which may facilitate future access.
(d) The likelihood of adjacent properties being developed in the near future such that they could be connected to the subject parcel.
(e) Proximity to emergency services.
(f) The adequacy of the proposed street intersection in terms of sight distances, spacing, slope, and the like.
(14) The project and related improvements shall be designed to protect land and water resources from pollution, including pollution of soils, groundwater, rivers, streams, lakes, ponds, and wetlands.
(15) Stormwater detention, retention, transport, and drainage facilities shall, insomuch as feasible, be designed to use or enhance the natural stormwater system on-site, including the storage and filtering capacity of wetlands, watercourses, and water bodies, and/or the infiltration capability of the natural landscape. Stormwater facilities shall be designed so as not to cause flooding or the potential for pollution of surface or groundwater, on-site or off-site.
(16) General purpose floor drains shall be connected to a public sewer system or an on-site holding tank (not a septic system) in accordance with state, county and municipal requirements, unless a groundwater discharge permit has been obtained from the State Department of Environmental Quality. General purpose floor drains which discharge to groundwater are generally prohibited.
(17) Sites at which hazardous substances, hazardous wastes, or potentially polluting materials are stored, used, or generated shall be designed to prevent spills and discharges of the materials to the air, surface of the ground, groundwater, lakes, streams, rivers, or wetlands.
(18) Secondary containment facilities shall be provided for above-ground storage of hazardous substances, hazardous wastes, or potentially polluting materials in accordance with state and federal requirements. Above-ground secondary containment facilities shall be designed and constructed so that the potentially polluting material cannot escape from the unit by gravity through sewers, drains, or other means, directly or indirectly into a sewer system, or to the waters of the state (including groundwater).
(19) Underground storage tanks shall be registered, installed, operated, maintained, closed, or removed in accordance with regulations of the State Department of Environmental Quality.
(20) Above-ground storage tanks shall be certified, installed, operated, maintained, closed, or removed in accordance with regulations of the State Department of Environmental Quality.
(21) Bulk storage facilities for pesticides and fertilizers shall be in compliance with requirements of the State Department of Agriculture.
(22) Abandoned water wells (wells that are no longer in use or are in disrepair), abandoned monitoring wells, and cisterns shall be plugged in accordance with regulations and procedures of the State Department of Environmental Quality and the County Health Department.
(23) State and federal requirements for storage, spill prevention, recordkeeping, emergency response, transport and disposal of hazardous substances, hazardous wastes, liquid industrial waste or potentially polluting materials shall be met. No discharge to surface water or groundwater, including direct and indirect discharges of waste, waste effluent, wastewater, pollutants, or cooling water, shall be allowed without approval from appropriate state, county, and local agencies.
(I) Validity of final site plans.
(1) Approval of final site plan is valid for a period of one year. If actual physical construction of a substantial nature of the improvements included in the approved site plan have not commenced and proceeded meaningfully toward completion during that period, the approval of the final site plan shall be void.
(2) Upon written application, filed prior to the termination of the one-year site plan review/approval period, the Village Council may authorize a single extension of the time limit for approval of a final site plan for a further period of not more than one year. The extension shall only be granted based on evidence from the applicant that the development has a likelihood of commencing construction within, but not to exceed, one-year extension.
(J) Conformance prior to site plan approval. Prior to approving a site plan, the Planning Commission shall require that the site plan conform to this chapter, as amended.
(K) Conditions of approval.
(1) As part of an approval to any site plan, the Zoning Administrator or Planning Commission may impose the conditions or limitations as in its judgment may be necessary for the protection of the public health, safety, and general welfare as provided by appropriate standards in this chapter.
(2) The conditions shall be related to and ensure that the site plan review requirements of division (F) of this section are met.
(3) Approval of a site plan, including conditions made as part of the approval, is attached to the property described as part of the application and not to the owner of the property.
(4) A record of conditions imposed shall be maintained. The conditions shall remain unchanged unless an amendment to the site plan is approved.
(5) A record of the decision of the Zoning Administrator, and of the Planning Commission, the reason for the decision reached, and any conditions attached to that decision shall be kept and made part of the minutes of the Planning Commission.
(6) The Zoning Administrator shall make periodic investigations of development for which site plans have been approved. Noncompliance with the requirements and conditions of the approved site plan shall constitute grounds for the Planning Commission or Zoning Administrator, whichever had final review/approval authority, to initiate a violation notice and enforcement action to gain compliance with the approved site plan. Any action to terminate site plan approval shall follow a hearing, of which the applicant or owner shall be given advance notice by certified mail.
(L) Amendments to approved site plans.
(1) Any person who has been granted site plan approval shall notify the Zoning Administrator of any proposed amendment to the approved site plan. The Zoning Administrator shall have the power to approve amendments to approve site plans, unless one of the following applies, in which case the Planning Commission shall approve the revised site plan.
(a) The addition of land to the legal description of the original site plan approval;
(b) The establishment of another use or uses;
(c) The addition of more sales or service area, or the addition of dwelling units; and/or
(d) An expansion or increase in intensity of use.
(M) Appeal.
(1) An appeal of a Zoning Administrator's decision site plan shall be to the Zoning Board of Appeals.
(2) An appeal of a Zoning Board of Appeals decision shall be to the County Circuit Court.
(Ord. 163, passed 6-4-2001; Ord. 230, passed 12-9-2014; Ord., passed 8-10-2021) Penalty, see § 153.999