Chickens & Livestock:
In order to have chickens or livestock, you must have a minimum of 5 acres of land. Currently, there are no exceptions to this ordinance.

Chickens and livestock must remain on your property and not be allowed to venture onto the property of another. If this happens you may receive a civil infraction citation for animal at large, as defined in the Township Ordinance found here.

 Dogs:
Licensing: It shall be unlawful for any person to own, possess or harbor a dog, six months or older, in this township without first having obtained a license from the township treasurer as defined in the Township Ordinance found here.

Barking Dogs:  The Township ordinance regarding barking dogs can be found here. A continuously barking dog can disturb anyone’s peace and tranquility. If this happens please contact our dispatch center at (734) 699-8930 and report the problem. Depending on the time of day either Animal Control or a Police Officer will respond and address the situation. 

Horses:
You must have at least five (5) acres for the first horse and one acre for each additional horse.

Township ordinances regarding dismantled vehicles can be found here. 

You may have received a notice for a dismantled vehicle for one of several reasons. The most common reason is that there is a vehicle on the property that has obvious signs that the vehicle is inoperable, like flat tires or damage to the vehicle that would make it unfit for travel on the roadway.

Another reason is that the registration for the vehicle has expired and the vehicle is considered unlicensed, as defined under section 42-52 (a) (1).

The Township ordinance regarding grass and weeds can be found here.

Q: I received a notice of violation for grass & weeds.
A: If you received a notice for grass and weeds, chances are the grass/weeds on the property exceed six (6) inches in length within 150 feet of a structure on developed land. In some cases 12 inches in the public right of way that the property owner is responsible to maintain.

Q: Why is it taking so long for my neighbors to clean their property up?
A: Usually, it takes many years for a property to escalate into an ordinance violation. If the property owner is being cooperative, the Township will work with them to bring the property into compliance. There are numerous reasons to take into consideration such as physical or financial hardships, poor weather conditions, etc. If the property owner is not responsive to the township it may be necessary to take further legal action to bring the property into compliance. Most of the cases brought before the court are handled locally at the 34^th District Court. Once the case been brought before the court, the court has jurisdiction over the matter and the case has to be adjudicated at court before any corrective action can be taken by the Township.

A "NOTICE of VIOLATION” is NOT a citation/ticket or a notice to appear in court.
A Notice of violation is simply a  notice informing you that there is an ordinance issue that needs to be addressed with the property. It will tell you what section of the code of ordinances or zoning ordinance that the violation is referring to. It also may tell you how much time you have to correct the violation before another inspection and further action takes place.

You may receive a written notice in the mail or a notice will be posted in a conspicuous place on the property in violation.

Upon notification or discovery that an ordinance violation exists, the Ordinance Department will follow this general outline:

1. An Ordinance Officer will visit the property to assess the nature of the violation and will attempt to make contact with the property owner. If the property owner is not available, the officer will leave a "Notice Of Violation" including a description of the offense, and a request for the property owner to correct the violation. 
2.  A code enforcement case is opened by the Ordinance Officer and a case number is assigned. 
3.  A re-inspection is scheduled within 1-14 days (the date of re-inspection is defined by the local code of ordinances and differs by violation).  Property owners seeking to request an extension to gain compliance must make a request in writing to the Ordinance Department. In some cases, extensions are granted if reasonable efforts have been made towards compliance. 
   *It is important to note that the Ordinance Officer must be able to personally view the violation from the public street or driveway. It may be necessary to provide the Ordinance Officer with consent to enter your property to view the violation.
4. After the re-inspection, if the violation remains (i.e. overgrown grass/weeds, snow on sidewalks, etc.) the Township will deploy a contractor to mitigate the violation. The responsible party will be billed for the mitigation of the violation, and a service fee will be added to the contractor's cost. A citation will be issued to the responsible party(s) and forwarded to the 34th District court for adjudication.  Some violations may result in a payable civil infraction citation/ticket, and in cases of a misdemeanor violation, the responsible party(s) will be required to appear in person at the 34th District Court.
   *Please note: The responsible party is still responsible for correcting the violation even after payment of any fines and costs ordered by the 34th District Court.  A new citation may be issued for each additional day that an unresolved violation exists. 
5.  Repeat offenders/reoccurring violations may incur increased fines and costs assessed by the court.

Q: Why is it taking so long for my neighbors to clean their property up?

A: Usually, it takes many years for a property to escalate to an ordinance violation. If the property owner is being cooperative, the Township will work with them to bring the property to compliance. There are numerous reasons to take into consideration, such as physical or financial hardships, poor weather conditions, etc. If the property owner is not responsive to the township it may be necessary to take further legal action to bring the property into compliance. Most of the cases brought before the court are handled locally at the 34^th District Court. Once the case been brought before the court, the court has jurisdiction over the matter and the case has to be adjudicated at court before any corrective action can be taken by the Township Ordinance Department.