Battle Creek, MI Environmental Rules: Stormwater Management (2026)

Chapter 1048 of the Battle Creek Codified Ordinances governs stormwater management. Section 1048.04 applies it to all land within the City: no person can subdivide, develop, change to a more intense land use, or construct, reconstruct or resize a structure without complying, unless an exemption applies. Section 1048.13 sets the core standard, requiring all new and redevelopment projects to comply with the volume and flow rate management requirements in the Technical Reference Manual (TRM).

The TRM is adopted in § 1048.14: the technical procedures and design standards were prepared by the Director and adopted by City Commission resolution, and any amendment to them is incorporated too. A stormwater management plan conforming to the TRM must be submitted with site development approval under § 1048.08.

Existing sites are pulled in by § 1048.07 when the gross floor area grows by more than ten percent or more than 4,000 square feet, whichever is less, when the use changes to a more intense classification, when a site alteration involves ten percent or more of the site area, or when a structure destroyed at fifty percent or more of its value is rebuilt. Section 1048.19 adds water quality rules for projects of .5 acres or more, and requires an oil and grease separation mechanism for developments over fifty percent impervious surface.

Exemptions in § 1048.05 cover single-family or duplex homes on lots in a subdivision with a City-approved storm water permit, maintenance that does not change storm water flows, and emergency action. Under § 1048.18, owners must keep a water course on their property free of trash and debris.