City of Kalamazoo, MI Chapter 5 Density/Intensity/Dimensional Standards

§ 5.1 Residential District Standards.

All development in the residential districts must comply with the standards in the following table unless otherwise expressly stated, or unless a different standard is required by an applicable overlay district.

Table 5.1-1 Residential District Standards [Amended 3-19-2007 by Ord. No. 1822; 1-29-2019 by Ord. No. 1978]
Standards	RS-4	RS-5	RS-7	RD-8	RD-19	RM-15	RM-15C	RM-24	RM-36	RMU
Minimum Lot Size
Lot Area (square feet)	10,000	4,500	6,250	6,250	4,000	4,000	5,000	5,000	4,000	5,500
Lot Area Per Dwelling Unit (square feet)	10,000	4,500	6,250	3,125	1,500	1,500	2,900	1,800	1,000	1,210
Lot Width (feet) [1]	75	33	50	50	33	33	40	50	33	44
Minimum Setback (feet)
Front [2]	25	25	20	20	20	20	20	20	15	15
Rear — abutting RS/RD districts	25	25	20	20	20	20	25	25	25	25
Rear — abutting RM/C/M districts	25	25	20	20	20	20	20	20	20	20
Side (interior) — abutting RS/RD districts	8	5	5	5	5	5	15	15 [3]	5 [3]	15 [3]
Side (interior) — abutting RM/C/M districts	8	5	5	5	5	5	5	5	5	5
Minimum Outdoor Area
Area (square feet per dwelling unit)	—	—	—	—	—	—	75	50	50	50
Minimum Dimension (feet)	—	—	—	—	—	—	7.5	5	5	5
Maximum Impervious Coverage
(percent of lot area) [4]	45	45	50	55	60	60	60	60	70	60
Maximum Height
(feet)	35	35	35	35	35	35	35	4 stories [5]	6 stories [5]	6 stories [5]

NOTES:
[1]	Lot width is measured at the front setback line.
[2]	Provided, however, that when 25% or more of all the frontage on one side of a street between two intersecting streets was, on April 22, 1954, built up with buildings, no building erected or altered after that date shall project beyond the average of the setback line so established, and provided, further, that no building shall be required to set back more than 40 feet in any case as a result of this provision.
[3]	Buildings over 35 feet in height shall have a side yard setback of 15 feet.
[4]	The Planning Commission is authorized to modify impervious cover limits for uses requiring special use permit approval.
[5]	Additional building height may be allowed if reviewed and approved as a Planned Unit Development.

§ 5.2 Commercial and Manufacturing District Standards.

All development in the Commercial and Manufacturing districts must comply with the standards in the following table unless otherwise expressly stated.

Table 5.2-1 Commercial And Manufacturing District Standards [Amended 3-19-2007 by Ord. No. 1822; 6-6-2022 by Ord. No. 2049]
	CMU	CNO	CN-1	CO	CN-2	CCBD	CBTR	M-1	M-2
Minimum Site Area for Rezoning to the District
(square feet)	—	—	—	5,000	1 Ac	—	2 Ac	1 Ac	1 Ac
Maximum Site Area
(square feet)	—	—	15,000		7 Ac	—	—	—	—
Minimum Lot Size
Lot Area (square feet)	2,900	6,250	2,900	5,000	5,000	—	—	5,000	5,000
Lot Area per Dwelling Unit (square feet)	1,800	3,750	1,800	[1]	1,800	—	NA	NA	NA
Lot Width (feet)	—	50	—	[2]	—	—	—	—	—
Minimum Setbacks (feet)
Front	—	15				—	50	—	25
Rear — abutting R district	15	25	15	15	15	—	50	25	50
Rear — abutting alley or C/M district	—	20	—	— [3]	—	—	50	—	25
Side (Interior) — abutting R district	15	15	15	15	15	—	25	25	50
Side (Interior) — abutting C/M district		6	—	— [3]	—	—	25	—	25
Maximum Height
(feet)	50	50	35	65	35	[4]	50 [5]	—	—
Maximum Impervious Cover
(% of lot)	65	60	65	70	75	100	70	80	80

NOTES:
[1]	900 square feet of lot area per multifamily unit, 4000 square feet of lot area per single-family or duplex dwelling unit.
[2]	No requirement unless the lot is used for residential purposes, in which case the minimum lot width shall be 44 feet at the building line.
[3]	No requirement unless the site is used for residential purposes, in which case a setback of five feet shall be required.
[4]	See § 2.3G.4: CCBD Central Business District.
[5]	Mechanical equipment on the roof of the building may not exceed 20 feet in height and must be screened. Mechanical equipment is not counted toward the maximum building height of the building. Maximum height of 30 feet for buildings located within 100 feet of R districts or lots containing residential use.

§ 5.3 Measurements, Computations and Exceptions.

A. Distance Measurements. Unless otherwise expressly stated, all distances specified in this Ordinance are to be measured as the length of an imaginary straight line joining those points.

B. Lot Area. The area of a lot includes the total horizontal surface area within the lot's boundaries, not including submerged lands, public access easements or rights-of-way. For nonconforming lots, see § 9.4: Nonconforming Lots.

C. Lot Width. Lot width is the distance between side lot lines measured at the point of the required front setback.

D. Setbacks.

1. Measurements. Setbacks refer to the unobstructed, unoccupied open area between the furthermost projection of a structure and the property line of the lot on which the structure is located. Setbacks must be unobstructed from the ground to the sky except as otherwise expressly allowed in this section. (See § 5.3D.5: Allowed Encroachments into Required Setbacks).

2. Front Setbacks.

a) Measurement. Front setbacks extend the full width of a lot and are measured from the street right-of-way line.

b) Double-Frontage Lots. Double-frontage lots must provide a front setback on both streets.

c) Corner Lots. On a corner lot, two front setbacks are required; however, the front setback on the side of the building that does not contain the primary entrance may be reduced by 50%.

[Amended 3-19-2007 by Ord. No. 1822]

3. Side Setbacks.

a) Side setbacks extend from the required front setback line to the required rear setback line and are measured from the side lot line. If no street or rear setback is required, the required setback area must extend the full depth of the lot.

b) Side setbacks on through lots must run the full length of the lot between street lot lines.

c) For nonconforming lots see § 9.4, Nonconforming Lots.

4. Rear Setbacks. Rear setbacks extend the full width of the lot and are measured from the rear lot line.

5. Allowed Encroachments into Required Setbacks. The following features may be located within required setbacks to the extent indicated.

a) Sidewalks and landscaping may be located in any required setback.

b) Cornices, canopies, eaves or other architectural features may project into required setbacks up to 2.5 feet.

c) Unenclosed fire escapes may project into required setbacks, provided that they are set back at least three feet from all property lines.

d) Unenclosed balconies and unenclosed porches may project into a front or rear setback by up to 10 feet.

e) An uncovered stair and necessary landings may project into required setbacks, provided they are set back at least three feet from all property lines and that the stair and landing may not extend above the entrance floor of the building except for a railing not exceeding four feet in height.

f) Bay windows, balconies, and chimneys may project into required setbacks up to two feet, provided that such features do not occupy, in the aggregate, more than 1/3 the length of the building wall on which they are located.

g) Accessory structures may project as allowed in § 4.3: Accessory Uses and Structures.

h) Fences and walls may encroach into setback area as permitted by § 4.3: Accessory Uses and Structures.

Figure 5-1: Building Setbacks

[Amended 3-19-2007 by Ord. No. 1822]

E. Height.

1. Measurement. Building height is measured as the vertical distance from grade at the base of the structure to:

a) The highest point of the coping of a flat roof,

b) The deck line of a mansard roof, or

c) The mean height between the eaves and ridge on gable, hip or gambrel roofs.

2. Exceptions.

a) Except as specifically provided in this Ordinance, the height limits of this Ordinance do not apply to any roof structures for housing elevators, stairways, tanks, ventilating fans, solar energy collectors, or similar equipment required to operate and maintain a building, provided that such structures do not cover more than 33% of the roof area or extend over 10 feet in height above the maximum height allowed by the underlying district.

b) Except as specifically provided in this Ordinance, the height limitations of this Ordinance do not apply to noncommercial/receive-only radio antennas, television antennas, religious assembly spires or steeples, municipal water towers, or similar structures, which may be erected above the height limit, nor to fire or parapet walls provided that such walls may not extend more than five feet above the roof.

c) Flag poles, or similar structures, are not subject to height limitations but must be set back one additional foot from the setback line for every one foot in height that the flag pole exceeds the height limit of the underlying zoning district.

Figure 5-2: Building Height Measurement

(Composite of Several Roof Forms)

F. Impervious Cover. Impervious surface is any hard surfaced, human-made area that does not readily absorb or retain water, including but not limited to building roofs, parking and driveway areas, graveled areas, sidewalks and paved recreation areas. In addition, impervious cover includes swimming pools, because absorbed and retained water is not permitted to permeate the ground. City approved pervious paving materials may be excluded from impervious cover calculations.

G. Limitations. The regulations of this chapter 5 shall not be applied so as to reduce the buildable width or depth of any lot of record to less than 50% of its average width or depth. These yard and setback regulations shall not be applied so as to prohibit the reconstruction of a one-family dwelling, existing on October 18, 2005, that has been damaged or destroyed and that is reconstructed within two years from the date of said damage or destruction; provided such reconstruction shall maintain the same yard and setback dimensions as the original structure.