Royal Oak, MI Zoning Overlays & Bonuses: Downtown Design Guide (2026)

Royal Oak has no ordinance titled a downtown design guide, but § 770-30, General building design and project compatibility, includes a subsection written specifically for the Central Business District that functions as one. Subsection E requires storefronts to be integrally designed with the building's upper floors so the whole facade reads as compatible, and requires buildings with multiple storefronts to be unified through architecturally compatible materials, colors, details, awnings, signage and lighting fixtures rather than a patchwork of unrelated tenant fronts. Ground-floor retail, service and restaurant uses must have large-pane display windows framed by the surrounding wall and related to the building's original architecture, and awnings cannot run longer than a single building front.

The same subsection sets build-to lines for streetfront buildings, requiring new construction to build to the front right-of-way line to form a continuous, pedestrian-oriented streetfront, with limited exceptions for plazas, courtyards, high-traffic arterials, or buildings with little pedestrian relationship. It also requires front facades to orient toward the street with a functional public entrance, sets a 50% minimum streetfront occupancy, and imposes parking structure design standards requiring ground-level retail frontage where structures front a street. The Plan Commission reviews compliance during site plan review and may modify standards or grant build-to line exceptions as it deems necessary for the surrounding area.