East Lansing doesn't need more student housing downtown, city officials say.

City Council will consider adopting a policy today that makes student-geared developments its lowest priority when approving new housing projects, focusing instead on encouraging home ownership.

The council will vote to approve the policy at today's meeting, which begins at 5 p.m. in Gold Rooms A and B of the Union.

The student rental market downtown is oversaturated, Mayor Sam Singh said.

"We have had a number of developments in the past five years that have focused on student housing," he said.

What the city hasn't provided, he said, are options for other groups, particularly young professionals and empty nesters.

But MSU students Lindsey Branch and Brooke Upchurch — who plan to live a bus ride away from campus at Chandler Crossings next year — said they'd like to see more places for students near campus.

"There needs to be more because there's so many students, and it's hard to live off campus," said Upchurch, a no-preference freshman. "When we tell people where we're living, they say, 'That's so far away.'"

Of the 154 residential units currently located in the Downtown Development Authority district, 77 percent are rentals.

Several years ago, the city conducted a study that found an immediate demand for more than 200 owner-occupied properties in the downtown area, said Tim Dempsey, the city's community development administrator.

There are currently only 38 such units downtown. All of those are located in City Center condominiums between M.A.C. Avenue and Charles Street — which city officials point to as a successful example of the type of projects they'd like to bring to the downtown in the future.

"What we're trying to do is create a better balance," Dempsey said. "It kind of informs developers up front where the priorities of the city are."

The policy would act as a set of guidelines for the council when considering project proposals.

"Right now, council has a difficult time evaluating the different kinds of proposals," Councilmember Kevin Beard said.

Council members said they have no intention of reducing student housing downtown and redevelopment of existing rental properties would likely be allowed, but Singh said the policy could make it more difficult to get new rentals approved.

"The developer would definitely have to make the case as to why they would need the student development," he said.

The City Council would be more likely to channel tax incentives to projects aimed at nonstudent markets, he said.

Student-oriented developments don't usually need that type of help, Dempsey said.

"The economics of that market are strong," he said.

He maintained that keeping students near campus is positive for the city and an important component of keeping businesses afloat.

"That's also a component that isn't here at critical times of the year," he said.

A proposal to expand the Downtown Development Authority's borders to Hagadorn Road could be finalized by February, Dempsey said.

But the council is a long way from approving that expansion, Singh said. If approved, the new border — which would encompass the primarily rental-based East Village area — would require the downtown housing policy to be revised, he said.