Serving Gogebic, Iron and Ontonagon Counties
Serving Gogebic, Iron and Ontonagon Counties
By TOM LAVENTURE
Ironwood — The city of Ironwood Planning Commission received its first overview of a revised zoning ordinance that will update standards and improve accessibility with changes to terminology and language that conform to evolving standards.
Various city committees, including the planning commission, will review and recommend changes or approval of the zoning ordinance for the city commission to consider adopting by the end of the year, according to Tom Bergman, director of community development for the city of Ironwood.
Carmine Avantini, president and owner of CIB Planning, and Kelly McIntyre, partner and director of planning for CIB, spoke virtually from the Fenton-based firm during the September meeting of the planning commission. The two-year ordinance update will assist the Redevelopment Ready Communities program certification with the Michigan Economic Development Corporation (MEDC) and improve eligibility for grants and loans.
The certification is about updating the city’s best practices, McIntyre said. Zoning is an area that must conform with contemporary accessibility standards to align with the city master plan.
“You need to designate areas for concentrated development, provide housing diversity, flexible parking standards, and encourage green infrastructure,” McIntyre said, noting the ordinance is consistent with comprehensive plan goals and fulfills the MEDC certification requirements.
The revised online zoning system is an interactive format with hyperlinks on key terms to navigate the user to sections that pertain to the application in question, she said. It will ease the search for answers to developer questions and the burden of calls to city staff.
Each set of uses for all types of residential, commercial or industrial zoning now have design standards to more clearly guide developers, she said. The downtown core is an example with a new design standard for commercial C-2A zoned storefronts that provide form regulations different from other commercial and mixed-use districts.
Developers should appreciate interactive approval processes, site plan reviews, special land uses and administration, McIntyre said. The terminology has also changed.
“This section complies with the state Enabling Act,” McIntyre said. “We are using the same terminology that the state uses in the Land Division Act.”
A new term, minimum use standard, allows a property owner to satisfy criteria for a permitted use without having to go through the public hearing process, she said. This situation is allowable when uses are considered permitted by right as opposed to a needing approval for a non-conforming permit request.
A review of Ironwood lot size requirements show a number of non-conforming sizes exist, she said. A neighborhood analysis provided a set of tailored standards that are more consistent with existing lot sizes.
The residential property chapter includes R-1 single family, R-2 multiple family, R-3 rural-residential, and R-4 high density units. Parcels with more than one designation were reconciled when possible and nonconforming R-1 parcels near the downtown were modified into R-1A low density lots of 8,400 square feet, and R-1B medium density lots of 5,000 square feet.
Alternative housing development clusters are referred to as “cottage courts” in the R-2 multiple and R-3 residential zones.
“So, a lot of times, it just comes down to giving direction and letting folks know what to do in advance, and then working with them on the different types of materials that are out there,” McIntyre said. “There’s a lot more materials out there now than there were even five years ago.”
Accessory buildings
The number of accessory building requests are growing universally, Avantini said. People want storage for their toys and the communities want to ensure the structures are presentable and conform to the property and zoning district.
“One of the things you don’t want with a new ordinance is to have a lot of variance requests,” he said. “You want to make sure you have districts and regulations that generally cover the bulk of the community.”
Variance requests are designed for unusually shaped properties, wetland issues and projects that stand out from surrounding properties, he said. There can’t be a regulation for every anticipated permitting issue in a zoning ordinance and so the regulations need to fit the majority of circumstances.
The zoning board authority can review the unique cases, he said. Allowing for frequent special use permits and variances is time-consuming work for the city and counterproductive to a zoning ordinance that should cover the bulk of what is coming with permit requests, he said.
Additional dwellings
Bergman said the current zoning ordinance allows more than one accessory structure if the available parcel size and shape allows for other structures. There must also be a primary residence on the site and an existing accessory structure that is conforming to the ordinance.
The revised ordinance contains language that, if approved by the city commission, would allow for accessory dwelling units or other affordable housing opportunities, McIntyre said. These types of units were once widely acceptable but were largely written out of zoning ordinances until recent years as communities sought ways to address affordable housing issues.
“We’re kind of coming back around to the idea that that use is important and it does fill a niche,” McIntyre said.
Whether for domestic use or rentals, the units range from renovated basements and detached garages to purpose-built structures. The smaller dwelling units offer the opportunity for a family member to remain with family with some independence, while also offering opportunities to rent small apartments.
“We did provide very strict provisions,” McIntyre said. “Certainly, they can be rented out, but again, it’s more controlled.”
The provisions require the owner to reside in either the primary or secondary unit and electrical units. The utilities must be billed to one residence.
The provisions help to prevent an investor from buying a single family home in a single family neighborhood and after being permitted to build an accessory unit winds up developing a multi family residential property, said Carmine Avantini of CIB Planning. The best way to ensure that provisions are working in practice is through administrative review to keep control.
“If you do want to go ahead with accessory dwelling units like this, you probably want to have some form of permitting process set up,” he said. “Especially where you’ve got just single family residential, as opposed to a mixture of single family and multiple family and so forth, where it’s less of a concern.”
