Williams Township opens public hearing on zoning changes to limit permits for properties with violations

Chair (S1) opened a public hearing on Zoning Ordinance No. 2024-07 and recognized Presenter (S5) to summarize the proposed changes. Presenter (S5) said the draft ordinance would prevent issuance of a zoning permit to a property that has an outstanding zoning violation, that is encumbered by a conservation easement or deed restriction preventing the proposed use, or for which the sewage-enforcement officer or sewer authority has not certified sufficient sewage capacity for the proposed addition or change of use.

Presenter (S5) said the changes aim to close loopholes that allowed accessory dwellings (for example, apartments above detached garages) to be used without addressing existing violations. One proposed change increases the minimum count for the zoning definition of a "garden apartment" from three to 10 units to avoid a definition loophole that, in the present ordinance language, allowed small multiunit buildings to be treated as garden apartments.

Board members discussed the draft's potential to render some units nonconforming if adopted (S7 warned that declaring existing units nonconforming would impose stricter rules on those property owners). Presenter (S5) said the draft was intentionally written to avoid declaring units nonconforming where possible and to instead tighten definitions and permit conditions. The board voted to send the proposed ordinance to the township planning commissions for review and comment.

The planning-review step is expected to bring comments back in November or December; the board indicated it would consider those comments before scheduling a subsequent advertisement and public meeting on adoption.

The hearing remains open and will return to the board after planning-commission review.