Land Development and Subdivision Design
The land development domain tests Michigan's Land Division Act, plat procedures, and the site-design checks a surveyor verifies before a plat is recorded.
Land Division Act basics
Act 288 of 1967, as amended, governs divisions of unplatted land. The central concept is the parent parcel as it existed on March 31, 1997, or at the date of the last transfer. Under the 10-year rule, a parent parcel may be divided into no more than four parcels in a 10-year period without plating; further divisions require a plat. Certain exempt divisions, such as transfers between adjacent landowners that create no new building site, and specified family divisions, do not count against the four. Confirm the current statutory text and local ordinances.
Plat approval and recording
A preliminary plat is reviewed by the municipality. A final plat must then be approved by the governing body, certified by the county plat board (county surveyor, treasurer, register of deeds, drain commissioner, road agency), and certified by the State Treasurer for tax matters before it is recorded with the register of deeds. Monuments must be set as the act and plat require.
Site design checks
Verify lot area and width-to-depth ratio, corner-lot setbacks, access, drainage and stormwater, easements, and right-of-way dedication. Coordinate county drain and road agency requirements early.
Worked example
A 30-acre parent parcel with no prior divisions has four divisions available in the 10-year window, producing four new parcels plus the remainder. If one division creates a 2-acre lot, the other three and the remainder must still meet zoning area, width, and access requirements.
Traps
Counting the remainder as a division; ignoring the March 31, 1997 parent-parcel snapshot; skipping plat board or Treasurer certification; approving lots that meet area but fail width-to-depth or access.