The final East Lansing Comprehensive Plan will be presented to City Council tonight — the culmination of five years of work.

The plan establishes guidelines for how the city could develop more homes, businesses and apartments in the future.

It focuses on bringing housing into downtown and creating a mix of students and permanent residents in the area.

The Comprehensive Plan Team will distribute the plan to council members and give the community a chance to hear more about it, said Kevin Beard, a City Council member and chair of the Comprehensive Plan Team.

"You're going to see much more housing in and around the downtown," he said. "You're going to see revitalized commercial strips, and you'll see our historic neighborhoods and other neighborhoods preserved."

The refurbished plan reflects the change in taste among citizens, said Jim van Ravensway, East Lansing's planning and community development director.

"It tries to recognize the change in the real world of how people view their community," van Ravensway said.

The state requires cities to have a comprehensive plan. While amendments have been made to the city's last plan, written in 1982, the new outline addresses the increasing demand for student housing.

"It makes more housing opportunities available to everybody, including students," van Ravensway said. "This plan stresses more focus on placing housing closer to campus … and less sprawl in the community."

In the past two years, the Stonehouse Village and Campus Village housing projects have offered more living opportunities within walking distance of campus for students. The comprehensive plan looks to build on that progress.

However, projects like the Northern Tier, which houses the Chandler Crossings apartments, make some students feel they are getting pushed out. The City Council has approved several new zoning districts in the past few years that limit growth of new rental homes in the neighborhoods near campus.

"It was hard to find a place that was affordable close to campus," marketing sophomore Alisha Tuckey said. "For transportation purposes, it's good to get some place close to campus because the buses (stop) so early if you can't afford a car."