Allendale Township board approves zoning overhaul to allow ADUs and tightly regulated short-term rentals

The Allendale Charter Township Board of Trustees on March 23 approved Ordinance 2026-04, a text amendment to the township zoning ordinance that adds rules for accessory dwelling units (ADUs) and creates a regulated short-term rental (STR) program in Agricultural and Residential zoning districts. Trustee Vander Wall moved to approve the ordinance, with support from Trustee MacDonald; the motion passed.

The ordinance revises multiple sections of the Zoning Ordinance, including changes to accessory building setback requirements, the addition of a definition for Accessory Dwelling Unit, and establishment of Section 23.24 (Short Term Rentals) and Section 23.25 (Accessory Dwelling Units). Under the new rules, short-term rentals will be allowed in Agricultural and Residential districts subject to a permit, written evidence of health-department approval, renewal requirements, and a set of performance standards covering parking, trash removal, maximum occupancy limits, noise restrictions and prohibitions on trespass and nuisance. The ordinance also includes an explicit cap limiting the number of township short-term rental permits to fifty.

The ADU provisions allow Accessory Dwelling Units as an accessory to a single-family dwelling and set minimum requirements related to siting, owner residency, configuration, setbacks, building appearance, maximum area and approval of water and wastewater by the health department. The zoning text amendments also include editorial corrections to section references and wording (for example correcting “principle” to “principal”).

The board’s minutes record the motion as made “with support” and state the motion passed; the transcript of the meeting does not record a roll-call tally or individual yea/nay votes. The minutes indicate the language change requested during the motion to remove the phrase “owner/resident” and replace it with “owner” in section 470.23.25(L). The minutes do not include verbatim public comment regarding the ordinance.

What happens next: the ordinance text amends the Allendale Charter Township Zoning Ordinance and, as written, creates a regulated path for ADUs and STRs subject to permitting and health-department signoff. The minutes do not specify effective dates or implementation timelines; the board will need to publish or post the adopted ordinance text and any permit application forms to commence permitting under the new rules.