CUP (Conditional Use Permit)

A conditional use permit (called "special land use" in Michigan's Zoning Enabling Act) lets a planning commission or governing body approve a use the base zoning district does not allow by right, typically attaching site-specific conditions — screening, hours of operation, traffic mitigation, parking — as a precondition of approval. Unlike a use permitted by right, a CUP application involves public notice, a hearing, and a discretionary decision that can be denied or conditioned even if the applicant meets every numeric zoning standard.

Cannabis uses in Michigan are the clearest current example: even in a municipality that has opted in under the Michigan Regulation and Taxation of Marihuana Act, adult-use cannabis facilities are commonly zoned as a special land use rather than a by-right use, meaning a site can be in the right zoning district and still require a separate public hearing and approval before a license application can proceed.

Timeline risk is the practical issue for a real estate transaction contingent on a CUP: hearing schedules, required notice periods, and the possibility of conditions that change the project's parking, buffering, or building footprint should be built into a purchase agreement's due diligence period rather than assumed to be a formality.