What is a zoning variance in Rochester Hills?

A variance is permission from the Zoning Board of Appeals to depart from a specific zoning standard on your property. Most residential variances are dimensional, covering numbers like setbacks, height, and lot coverage.

The standard for a dimensional variance is practical difficulty, decided by majority vote (§ 138-2.407). The board must make findings that include:

• Strict compliance would unreasonably prevent a permitted use or be unnecessarily burdensome.
• A lesser variance would not suffice.
• The problem stems from unique circumstances of the property.
• The problem is not self-created.

A variance to allow a use the district does not permit is a use variance, which carries a harder standard and more prerequisites (§ 138-2.408). The ZBA has 7 members plus 2 alternates appointed by City Council (§ 138-2.103).