Trowbridge Township

No zoning district in Trowbridge Township explicitly lists short-term rentals, Tourist Homes, or Bed & Breakfast Inns as a permitted or Special Use. The Zoning Ordinance (updated July 1, 2025) defines a Tourist Home / B&B Inn as ‘a building, other than a hotel, boarding house, lodging house, or motel, where lodging is provided by a resident family in its home for compensation, mainly for transients’ ^[3], but the use chart in Chapters 5 through 10 does not include that classification as permitted or special-use in AG, R-1 (Rural Estate), R-2 (Low Density Residential), RL (Residential Lake), C-1 (Neighborhood Business), or I-1 (Industrial) ^[3].

Hotels and motels are referenced in the parking standards (Chapter 14) but are similarly absent from any district’s Permitted Use or Special Use list ^[3]. In practice that leaves short-term rental use in a regulatory gap: not explicitly permitted, not explicitly banned. Township enforcement would typically begin with a complaint and a Zoning Administrator review.

What to do before listing: request a written zoning determination from Zoning Administrator Larry Ladenburger at 269-377-6693 ^[2] confirming whether your specific parcel and use plan are permitted, require a Special Use Permit, or are prohibited. Verify the parcel’s district on the official zoning map below.

🗺 Trowbridge Township Zoning Map (PDF, updated 09/08/2023)

There is no STR-specific application form, online portal, or rental license issued by Trowbridge Township. The township does not publish an STR registration on its Forms & Permits page ^[2].

What may apply, depending on the Zoning Administrator’s determination:

All four use the same Township Hall submission process ^[2]. Forms are PDF and submitted in person or by mail to 913 M-40 South, Allegan, MI 49010.

Trowbridge Township does not publish a separate STR fee or fine schedule. The zoning-permit fee schedule below applies to any STR-related permit filing ^[2]:

Zoning Ordinance violations are subject to the enforcement provisions in the Zoning Ordinance ^[3]; civil noise and nuisance violations are enforced under the Anti-Noise Ordinance ^[4] and Blight Ordinance ^[5]. Specific fine amounts are not published on the township website — verify with the Zoning Administrator before assuming a number.

Trowbridge Township does not operate a rental-property inspection program. Building, electrical, and mechanical inspections for new construction, additions, or substantial alterations are handled by Professional Code Inspectors (PCI) in Dorr, Michigan under contract with the township ^[2]:

Septic system and private water well permits are handled by the Allegan County Health Department Environmental Health Division at 3255 122nd Avenue, Suite 200, Allegan, with construction permits required before installing or modifying an onsite sewage disposal system ^[7].

Any rental property in Trowbridge Township — short-term or long-term — must comply with the Anti-Noise Ordinance ^[4] and the Blight Ordinance ^[5]. Both are adopted township ordinances enforced by the township and (for criminal nuisance) the Allegan County Sheriff.

Both ordinance PDFs on the township website are scanned image documents (no machine-readable text). For exact decibel limits, quiet-hour windows, and specific blight-violation triggers, the ordinance text must be read on paper or the Zoning Administrator should be consulted directly ^[2]. A safe operating baseline:

• Quiet hours typical of rural Michigan townships (10 PM – 7 AM)
• No outdoor amplified music after dusk
• Yard maintained, trash containerized, no inoperable vehicles visible from the road
• Off-street parking sized for stated occupancy

The Allegan County Sheriff’s Office handles non-emergency noise and disorderly conduct calls in unincorporated portions of the county.

Trowbridge Township’s most recent rental-relevant action was the Zoning Ordinance update effective July 1, 2025 ^[3]. As of May 12, 2026, the township has not adopted a dedicated short-term rental ordinance, a rental-registration program, or an STR permit cap.

What that means for investors:

• STR strategy is uncertain. Because Tourist Home / B&B use is not listed in any district’s permitted-use chart, an investor relying on STR income should not close on a Trowbridge Township parcel without a written zoning determination from the township first.
• LTR strategy is straightforward. Standard residential leases (31+ days) in single- or two-family dwellings on conforming lots have no township-level registration overhead.
• Watch the meeting minutes. The Planning Board meets the third Thursday of each month and the Township Board meets the first Thursday. Any future STR ordinance would surface there first ^[2].