This chapter shall be known and may be cited or referred to
as the "Subdivision and Condominium Development Ordinance."
Development of land is a privilege conferred by the laws of
the State of Michigan and by this chapter. It is the responsibility
of the City of Bridgman to regulate the development of lands in and
around the City for the following purposes:
A. To protect and promote the health, safety, and general welfare of
the people of the City and people visiting or passing through the
City.
B. To leave for future generations a strategically planned and well-constructed
infrastructure so that the focus of citizen concern is not past error
but future growth.
C. To promote the orderly development of property so that such development
enhances and complements existing City features.
D. To ensure that development proceeds in a timely manner.
This chapter shall apply to improvement of all lands within
the City of Bridgman proposed for planting or subdivision under the
Land Division and Condominium Acts of the State of Michigan, except
as otherwise exempted.
Anyone contemplating the subdivision, planting or replanting
pursuant to the Land Division or Condominium Acts of the State of
Michigan shall comply with this chapter.
The following terms shall have the following meanings as used
in this chapter:
AGENT
A person and/or corporation, etc., acting for and/or in the
stead of another person.
ALLEY
The public right-of-way which affords secondary means of
access to properties abutting upon a street.
APPLICANT
The person, corporation, firm, etc., seeking to develop a
property under this development chapter.
AREA, GROSS
The gross area of a parcel or development is the total area
(in acres) in fee ownership, which excludes right-of-way already dedicated
but includes nonresidential land uses and private streets.
AREA, NET
The net area of a parcel or development is the area (in acres)
of the actual tract of land upon which the improvements are proposed
to be located. This area shall include the site for all principal
and accessory building(s) and associated parking area, but does not
include common open space or recreational facilities, or the vehicular
circulation system, either private or public.
BENCH MARK
A permanent or semipermanent physical mark of known elevation
referenced to a recognized datum.
BLOCK
A tract of land bounded by street rights-of-way, or by a
combination of street rights-of-way and public parks, cemeteries,
railroad and utility rights-of-way, bulkhead lines or shorelines of
waterways, or corporate boundary lines.
BUILDING
An enclosed structure, constructed partially or wholly above
the ground, with a permanent roof, separated on all sides from adjacent
open space by exterior or party walls, which is permanently affixed
to the ground.
BUILDING SETBACK LINE
A line indicating the minimum horizontal distance between
any property line and a building on the property.
CITY
The City of Bridgman, Berrien County, Michigan.
CITY COUNCIL
The Mayor and City Council of the City of Bridgman, Berrien
County, Michigan.
CITY ENGINEER
The person or organization designated by the City to administer
the engineering activities of the City.
CITY MANAGER
The person designated by the City Council as to administer
overall activities of the City and its subordinate departments, as
designated by the City Council.
CITY ZONING ADMINISTRATOR
The person or organization designated by the City to administer
the planning activities of the City.
COMPREHENSIVE PLAN
The "City of Bridgman, Michigan General Development Plan
Amendment 1997" or subsequent amendments thereto.
CONSTRUCTION COST
Estimated cost of construction, excluding engineering costs
and excluding required City fees, based on actual costs of improvements.
COUNTY
Pertaining to the County of Berrien, Michigan.
CROSSWALK
A public right-of-way located across a block to provide pedestrian
access.
CUL-DE-SAC
A vehicle turnaround are at the end of a dead-end street.
DETENTION BASIN
A covered or uncovered reservoir designed to hold an accumulation
of stormwater runoff so as to reduce peak flow in a stormwater drainage
system.
DEVELOPER
A person, group of persons, organization, or other entity
who petitions the City according to this chapter for the purpose of
improving or subdividing land; may also be referred to as "owner"
or "applicant" depending on the context.
DEVELOPMENT
Any subdivision, plan of condominium, or plan to improved
or unimproved real property, including single lots and shall not be
limited to buildings or other structures, located within the City.
DEVELOPMENT PLAN
The documentation, both written and diagrammatic, which sets
forth the improvements proposed for any given subdivision or condominium.
DEVELOPMENT STANDARDS
This chapter and development standards contained herein,
hereafter referred to as "ordinance" and/or "standards."
DIRECTOR OF PUBLIC SERVICES
The person designated by the City Council and City Manager
to administrator the water, sewer and street construction and maintenance
activities of the City.
DRAINAGE SWALE
A drainage ditch of shallow depth with small side slopes.
DWELLING UNIT
One or more rooms which, taken together, are intended as
living quarters for a single family or for a group of people living
together as a family.
EASEMENT
A grant by a property owner for the use of a portion of said
owner's property by another person or other legal entity or the
general public for a specified purpose or purposes.
ELEVATION
The vertical distance of an existing point from a stated
datum plane.
ENGINEER
A Michigan-licensed professional engineer.
ENGINEER, CITY
The engineer or engineering firm designated by the City to
administer the engineering activities of the City.
FILL
Any act by which earth, sand, gravel, rock, or other material
is deposited, placed, replaced, pushed, dumped, pulled, transported
or moved to a new location and shall include the conditions resulting
therefrom.
FRONTAGE
That portion of a property abutting a public right-of-way
along what would be considered the front yard.
GRADE
The slope of land, road, street, or other public way expressed
in percent.
GRADIENT
Change in vertical distance per change in horizontal distance;
usually expressed as a percentage (e.g., "0.40%" where rise equals
0.40% of run).
IMPROVEMENTS
Grading, street surfacing, curbs, gutters, sidewalks, water
mains, fire hydrants, sanitary sewers, storm sewers, culverts, trees,
bushes, landscaping and other additions to the natural state of land
which increase its value, utility or habitability in accordance with
the provisions of these development standards.
A.
PRIVATE IMPROVEMENTAny installed or constructed facility for which the responsibility of maintenance and ownership will be retained by the owner or a legally formed homeowners' association.
B.
PRIVATE COMMON IMPROVEMENTSAny installed or constructed facility for which the responsibility of maintenance and ownership will be retained by a legally formed homeowners' association. This includes amenities such as swimming pools, tennis courts, parks, etc.
C.
PUBLIC IMPROVEMENTAny facility constructed and dedicated to general public use or benefit for which the City or other units of government is intended assume the responsibility for maintenance and operation.
INSPECTION
Activity of the state, City, owner, or developer, or its
agents to verify the compliance of construction of public improvements
with state or City rules, regulations, ordinances, agreements, etc.,
and with the plans and specifications; implies no detailed control
of work or workers; not to be confused with "supervision."
INSPECTOR
An agent of the City whose sole duty it is to verify, not
ensure, the compliance of construction of public improvements with
state or City rules, regulations, ordinances, agreements, etc., and
with these plans and specifications; not to be confused with "supervisor."
LOT
A measured portion of a parcel or tract of land which is
described and fixed in a recorded plan.
LOT, CORNER
A lot situated at the intersection of two or more streets,
where the interior angle of such intersection coterminous with the
right-of-way lines of such streets does not exceed 135°.
LOT, THROUGH
A lot having frontage on two parallel or approximately parallel
streets, and which is not a corner lot. On a through lot, both street
lines shall be deemed front lines.
OFFICIAL MAP
The map showing the streets, highways and parks theretofore
laid out, adopted and established by law and any amendments or additions
thereto resulting from the City Council action or the approval of
subdivision plans.
ORDINANCE
This subdivision and condominium development ordinance.
OUTLOT
A lot that shall not be developed but is reserved for a specific
purpose or purposes.
OWNER
Any individual, firm, association, partnership, corporation,
trust, or any other legal entity having sufficient proprietary interest
in the land sought to be developed to commence and maintain proceedings
to develop the same under this chapter.
PARCEL
A continuous area or acreage of land which can be described
as provided for in the Land Division (formerly the Subdivision Control
Act) Act or the Condominium Act of the State of Michigan.
PARKWAY
The part of the public street right-of-way not occupied by
the street pavement and located between the back of the curb and the
sidewalk as well as the dividing strip of a roadway.
PAVEMENT
The portion of a street or access easement intended to bear
vehicular traffic, not including curbs.
PLAN
A map or drawing generally depicting existing survey, topographical,
or subdivision data.
PLAN, FINAL
A plan showing City-approved site plan of the condominium
or plat of subdivisions containing the date of the City approval action.
PLAN, PRELIMINARY
A plan showing the proposed site plan of the condominium
or plan of subdivision subject to City approval.
PLANNED UNIT DEVELOPMENT
A parcel of land or contiguous parcels, having or proposed for planned unit development zoning which meets the minimum specifications of Article
IX, Planned Units Development, of the City of Bridgman zoning ordinance are preplanned developments composed of various compatible
uses allowed by the City of Bridgman zoning ordinance and Building
Ordinance, and for other special uses not so provided, including,
but not limited to, residential, hospital, outdoor theaters, public
and private schools, philanthropic institution, college, country clubs,
golf courses, private clubs, community swimming pools and recreational
facilities, services-type businesses, shopping centers, research and
development facilities, commercial industry, and industrial parks.
PLANNING COMMISSION
The words "Planning Commission" as used herein, refer to
the Planning Commission of the City of Bridgman, Michigan.
PLANS
Bound set of prints typically prepared by an engineer and/or
architect or similar professional depicting the work to be done to
fully construct the improvements proposed for a development.
PROTECTIVE COVENANTS
Contracts entered into between private parties and constitute
a restriction on the use of all private property within a subdivision
or condominium for the benefit of property owners, and to provide
mutual protection against undesirable aspects of development which
would tend to impair stability of values.
RESUBDIVISION
The rearrangement of a portion of land previously subdivided,
subject to the same constraints that apply to subdivision.
RIGHT-OF-WAY
A general term denoting land, property, or interest therein
acquired and dedicated for or used as a roadway, pedestrianway, bike
path, railroad route, utility route, or other public or quasi-public
use.
ROAD or ROADWAY
Pavement and shoulders or curbs; not to be confused with
"street."
SEWERAGE
A system constructed to carry away storm or wastewater and
all appurtenances to that system.
SIDEWALK
That portion of a right-of-way intended for pedestrian use.
SITE
A lot or parcel of land or a contiguous combination thereof,
where grading work is performed as a single unified operation.
SLOPE
A gradient expressed as a ratio (e.g., "4:1").
STANDARDS AND SPECIFICATIONS
A degree or level of requirement which is the acknowledged measure of comparison for qualitative or qualitative comparison to the exact statement of particulars describing materials, dimensions, and workmanship for all elements to be constructed or installed within a development regulated by the terms of this chapter for which standards and specifications are provided as Part
2 of this chapter of the Code of the City of Bridgman.
STREET
A publicly owned right-of-way which affords primary means
of access by pedestrians and vehicles to abutting properties, whether
designated as a street, avenue, highway, road, boulevard, lane or
however otherwise designated.
STREET, ARTERIAL
Streets and highways servicing major activity centers, the
highest traffic volume corridors, the longest trip desires, and a
high proportion of total urban area travel on a minimum of street
mileage. Service to abutting land is subordinate to the provisions
of travel service to major traffic movements. This system carries
the major portion of trips entering and leaving the City of Bridgman
as well as the majority of through movements desiring to bypass the
City. The minimum required right-of-way width for arterial street
shall be 100 feet.
STREET, COLLECTOR
Streets intended to collect and convey traffic from minor
streets in the neighborhood and channel it into the arterial systems.
The minimum required right-of-way width for collector street shall
be 80 feet.
STREET, FRONTAGE ACCESS
A minor street which is parallel and adjacent to arterial
streets and which provides access to abutting properties and protection
to local traffic from fast, through-moving traffic on arterial streets.
STREET, LOCAL
Streets not classified in a higher system, providing direct
access to abutting land and access to the higher systems. They offer
the lowest level of mobility and have limited continuity to discourage
through traffic. The minimum required right-of-way width for local
street shall be 66 feet.
STREET, PRIVATE
An undedicated street, generally within a condominium which
is privately owned or maintained or an easement of access benefiting
a dominant tenant.
STREET, PUBLIC
Any arterial, collector, or minor street which is shown on
the condominium plan or plat of subdivision and is or is to be dedicated
to public use.
SUBDIVIDER
The person or persons responsible for preparing and recording
the plats of the subdivision and for carrying out all appropriate
requirements, including responsibility for public improvements installation
relating thereto as outlined herein.
SUBDIVISION, SUBDIVIDE
A.
The partitioning of a parcel or tract of land by the proprietor
(landowner or developer) or by his heirs or her heirs, executors,
administrators, legal representatives, successors, or assigns for
the purpose of sale, or lease of more than one year, or of building
development that results in one or more parcels of less than 40 acres,
or the equivalent, that is not exempted from the platting requirements
of Section 108 and 109 of the Land Division Act, Public Act 591 of 1996, as amended. "Subdivide" or subdivision"
does not include property transfer between two or more adjacent parcels,
if the property taken from one parcel is added to an adjacent parcel;
and any resulting parcel shall not be considered a building site unless
the parcel conforms to the requirements of the applicable City of
Bridgman ordinances.
B.
A "planned unit development" is, for the purpose of this chapter,
a subdivision whether or not it is divided into two or more parts.
C.
The term "subdivision" includes "replat" and, where it is appropriate
to the context, relates to the process of subdivision or to the land
subdivided.
D.
Applicants for a land division of land meeting the definition of Section 108 and 109 of the Land Division Act, P.A. 591 of 1996, as amended, shall submit an application to the City of Bridgman, pursuant to Chapter
300, Land Division, of the Code of the City of Bridgman. A parcel division application can be obtained from the City Zoning Administrator or City Assessor.
UNIT
A measured portion of a condominium site which is intended
for individual use and occupancy.
UTILITIES
Services provided by public or quasi-public agencies, including
but not limited to telephone communication, electrical power, heating
gas, cable television signals, steam, telegraph signals, transportation,
etc.
Any dispute arising from the of this chapter shall be resolved
by the City. The City Manager shall be authorized to interpret this
chapter. The City Manager's interpretation may be appealed to
the City Council. The City Councils decision on any interpretation
shall be the final administrative review.
Nothing contained in this chapter shall be interpreted to be
a consent, license, or permit to use any property; to locate any building,
structure, or facility; or to carry on any trade, industry, occupation,
or activity.
In their interpretation and application, the provisions of this
chapter shall be held to be the minimum requirements for the promotion
of the public health, safety, comfort, morals and general welfare
as set forth in the provisions hereof. When the provisions of this
chapter impose greater restrictions than those of any statute, other
ordinance or regulation, the provisions of this chapter shall be controlling.
Where the provisions of any statute, other ordinance or regulation
impose greater restrictions than this chapter, the provisions of such
statute, other ordinance or regulation shall be controlling.
The provisions of this chapter shall be interpreted to be cumulative
of, and to impose limitations in addition to, all other codes, laws
and ordinances in existence or which may be passed governing any subject
matter of this chapter. The several provisions of this chapter shall
also be interpreted to be cumulative of each other. To the greatest
extent possible, the provisions of this chapter shall be construed
to be consistent with, and not in conflict with, the provisions of
such other codes, laws and ordinances and each other, to the end that
all such provisions may be given their fullest application.
Upon finding that severe hardship, caused by conditions uniquely
attributable to the land under consideration, would be imposed upon
an applicant by compliance with these regulations and upon a finding
that there are alternate feasible means of fulfilling the purpose
and spirit of the regulations to protect the public health, safety
and welfare, the City Engineer may recommend and the City Council
may approve variances to and modifications from the regulations of
this chapter.
Any appendices referred to in this chapter are to be considered
a part of this chapter.