Rochester Hills, MI Animal Ordinances: Veterinary Clinic Zoning (2026)

Section 138-4.439 of the Zoning Ordinance sets two conditions on veterinary hospitals and clinics wherever the use is permitted in Rochester Hills. First, subsection A requires that all activities of the practice be conducted within a totally enclosed building; there is no allowance for outdoor kennel runs, exercise yards or treatment areas. Second, subsection B addresses clinics sited in the NB (Neighborhood Business) or CB (Community Business) districts: any such clinic must be set back at least 40 feet from any adjoining R, RCD, RM-1 or RMH residential zoning district, and a Type C landscape buffer must be installed along that shared property line.

The requirement is designed to keep the noise, odor and activity of a veterinary practice, which by definition houses sick or distressed animals, away from residential lot lines even when the underlying business district directly abuts a neighborhood. Because the enclosed-building rule applies citywide and the 40-foot buffer rule applies specifically where a business-district clinic touches housing, a clinic proposed for a purely commercial or industrial district without a residential neighbor only has to satisfy subsection A. The Planning and Economic Development Department reviews a veterinary clinic's site plan against Section 138-4.439 alongside the rest of the applicable use and district standards before the Planning Commission can approve it.