Density bonuses in Wayne County are city-specific rather than countywide; Detroit offers limited bonuses for affordable housing and historic-preservation projects, while suburban communities rarely use the tool, preferring conventional zoning and PUD overlays.
Wayne County itself does not administer a density-bonus program because zoning is municipal. Detroit's zoning code allows modest floor-area or height bonuses for projects that include deed-restricted affordable units, and the Mayor's Inclusionary Housing Ordinance requires affordable set-asides on certain subsidized projects. Outside Detroit, density bonuses are uncommon; most cities use planned unit developments to negotiate higher density on a project basis instead of an entitlement. Michigan does not impose a state-level density-bonus statute parallel to California's, so each community sets its own rules. Affordable-housing requirements vary widely between jurisdictions.
Failure to record affordability covenants on a bonus project can void the entitlement and trigger building-permit revocation.
See how Dearborn's density bonus law rules stack up against other locations.
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