Grand Rapids, MI Zoning Overlays & Bonuses: Downtown Design Guide (2026)

Section 5.11.13 of Chapter 61, the Zoning Ordinance, governs streetscape improvements for projects that need a Land Use and Development Services permit or that install or replace sidewalks and other right-of-way facilities. Where an area streetscape plan has been approved, the ordinance names the Downtown Streetscape Design Guidelines as an example, those design guidelines control new walking surfaces, street furniture, street trees, landscaping, and lighting fixtures in the public right-of-way instead of the code's default streetscape standards. Outside an approved plan area, the code falls back to its own tree-spacing and root-barrier standards.