Officials unite to fight for local zoning control

STERLING HEIGHTS — Local officials from three counties are uniting with a message to Lansing lawmakers: Work with us, not against us.

That plea was emphasized again and again during a Feb. 24 news conference where municipal leaders from Canton Township to Clinton Township and Riverview to Rochester Hills assembled to target proposed state legislation that would restrict local government authority on key zoning issues.

“One of our core responsibilities as local elected officials is to make responsible decisions that help improve the quality of life for our residents — and zoning plays a large role in that,” said Macomb Township Supervisor Frank Viviano. “But this proposal package would significantly restrict local decision-making regarding zoning. It would prevent local leaders from making responsible determinations that have always been handled at the local level and with community input.”

The proposed legislation aims to reduce zoning restrictions and prompt more housing development across the state. If approved, a news release announcing the legislative package stated the key reforms would:

• Allow duplexes in single-family residential zones that are in, or adjacent to, metropolitan areas.
• Prohibit minimum parking space requirements of more than one space per dwelling. 
• Update the procedure for protesting zoning changes by expanding the petition area radius and setting a 60% signature threshold.
• Define setback requirements in metropolitan areas at 15 feet from the front of the property line and 5 feet from the sides and rear (with exceptions for sensitive areas like marshes and waterways). 
• Cap minimum dwelling size requirements at 500 square feet.
• Prohibit minimum lot size requirements of more than 2,500 square feet for single-family homes.
• Allow Accessory Dwelling Units on parcels with single-family homes. The legislation also defines what constitutes an ADU, caps setback requirements, prohibits additional parking mandates and allows the ADU to be built on- or off-site. 
• Reduce bureaucratic delays by creating standards for local governments to follow when reviewing development requests. 

Opponents, however, say the legislation would undercut carefully crafted land use rules specific to individual communities, risk overloading infrastructure, strip decision-making from municipal elected officials and disregard the wishes of local residents.

The bipartisan legislation was introduced by state Rep Kristian Grant, a Grand Rapids Democrat, and state Rep. Joe Aragona, a Republican who represents northern Clinton Township and most of Macomb Township.

Nonetheless, the top elected leaders of those two townships are against the proposals spelled out in House Bills 5529 through 5532 and say they were blindsided by the recent introduction. The top-down approach to zoning subverts local decision-making and removes citizen input, said Viviano, who spoke as Clinton Township Supervisor Paul Gieleghem stood alongside.

“Those of us at the local level are living and working in the communities that we represent, and it's us — and our elected boards — that are in the best positions to understand what our unique communities need and how our residents choose to live,” Viviano said during the hastily called news conference at the downtown Detroit office of the Southeast Michigan Council of Governments. “This is not about resisting change. It's about preserving the democratic principle that the residents deserve a meaningful voice in shaping their own communities.”

SEMCOG Executive Director Amy O’Leary said more than 1,300 officials representing 6.2 million people across the state had signed a letter of opposition sent to Aragona and members of the House Regulatory Reform Committee. Aragon is chairman of the committee.

O’Leary said the legislation threatens “to strip local elected officials of their decision-making authority. It would also dismiss years of community planning work and amount to a clear override, from Lansing, of local voices and voter-backed positions.”

O’Leary said the dozens of officials gathered for the news conference “are working hard to increase the types of housing available in our communities and address housing affordability for everyone. What we are united in opposition to is zoning preemption legislation that has been introduced in the Michigan House of Representatives.”

Rochester Hills Mayor Bryan Barnett said the proposed legislation “will cause many more problems than it will solve.”

“Preemption does not lead to greater affordability,” he said. “We need collaboration and I and my colleagues, and the 1,300-plus strong standing behind me and signing that document, are urging legislators to stop this preemption package now. These bills promise affordability, but they deliver something far more sinister: centralization.” 

Barnett said protecting local decision-making crosses party lines and opponents of the legislation aren’t trying to block development in their communities. 

“Every person behind me is pro-housing,” he said. “Don't let anyone tell you anything different.” Zoning, he added, “is not just red tape.”

“It's a tool we use to ensure that growth is sustainable,” he said. “That our roads and sewers can handle new density. That our communities evolve in a way that respects the residents who call them home. What we need is support, genuine support. And we've urged the Legislature to reject this government overreach and trust these leaders behind me and across the state to do their jobs. A strong Michigan depends on strong local communities, and we encourage Lansing to work with us and not over us.” 

Gieleghem, the Clinton Township supervisor and a former state representative, said the state’s Zoning Enabling Act provides communities with “guideposts” to ensure appropriate land use and should be left as is. 

“We created it in such a way that works the right way for our communities,” he said. “Eliminating many of those standards and those parameters and those guideposts and taking all control away from local communities, basically places the power in the hands of the developers.” 

However, the best land use decisions for increased housing must remain at the local level, opponents argued.

“We understand the American dream of ownership, and we work hard every day to make it possible for as many people as possible,” Barnett said. “And we certainly know and understand that housing is a real national and local challenge. We know we need more diversity in housing stock, more options, more possibilities. We all agree. But taking away the responsibility of locally elected officials to implement those community-led decisions you've heard about today is not the answer.”

Sterling Heights Councilwoman Barbara Ziarko put it more succinctly. 

“It's just another mistake waiting to happen,” she said.  

Aragona could not be immediately reached for comment following the news conference, but said in an earlier news release, “We need to make homes affordable again.” 

In her State of the State address Feb. 25, Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer signaled her support for streamlining zoning rules.

“Let’s make it easier to build in-law suites and multifamily homes,” Whitmer said. “Let’s modernize lot sizes, setback rules, and parking requirements. By improving zoning and building codes, we can build more homes quicker, at lower cost.”

Call Staff Writer Gary Winkelman at (586) 498-1070.