From development issues to city government finances, there are several issues East Lansing City Council will work on this fall. Council held its meeting of the fall semester at 7 p.m. Tuesday night.
NON-CONFORMING HOUSING
An issue involving student housing that restricts upgrades and additions, non-conforming housing refers to any rental properties in parts of the city intended for family occupancy that cater to non-family residents.
East Lansing director of planning, building and development Tim Dempsey said non-conforming properties could stay as they were, but could not be drastically changed after the ordinance was put in place in 1997.
They cannot have any major renovations done, such as creating an additional bathroom or bedroom. Other improvements can be made from an aesthetic standpoint, just not a change in spacing, Dempsey said.
But this policy could change.
Dempsey said a planning committee met on sept. 14 to recommend an ordinance allowing the areas to consider and recommend four ordinances on the non-conforming housing.
They range from allowing increasing sizes in one part of town — between Grand River Avenue and the Red Cedar River and Bogue Street and Hagadorn Road — to variations of changes to properties up to 20 percent everywhere in East Lansing.
Once a planning commission and zoning commission recommend one of the proposed ordinances, or a hybrid of several of them, they will go to City Council for a vote later this fall.
Dempsey said this can change students' choice of apartment rentals.
“The potential impact on students is that if landlords are allowed to do interior re-configurations or exterior additions this would then potentially change some of the rental properties in town,” he said. “People could end up renting a place with an extra bedroom or bathroom. It could make some of the older properties more attractive to people.”
PARK DISTRICT EXTENSION
Park District, or City Center II, on Grand River Avenue and Abbot Road was set to be demolished by Dec. 31, Dempsey said.
He said the date was originally agreed upon by City Council and the property owners, development entity DRW Trading Group. Now, they are redoing their plan to include senior housing and a parking ramp.
The city expects the new plan to arrive mid-September, with public hearings and planning commissions expected in mid-October, Dempsey said.
“Students are welcome and encouraged for their input,” he said. “Things like this that will impact maybe not them, depending on timing (of their graduation). Projects like this will impact East Lansing for years and years, decades to come. It’s important to have the student voice in the project.”
FINANCIAL HEALTH TEAM
At a City Council meeting in February, a Financial Health Review Team for the city of East Lansing was appointed to look at the financial stability of the city.
City manager George Lahanas said this is not unusual for local governments across the state.
“Local governments in Michigan are having a very, very tough financial period,” Lahanas said. “The surprising thing is that cities that should be prosperous are not prosperous. East Lansing is having financial challenges, Midland is having financial challenges, lots of cities are having challenges.”
Lahanas said the team, made up of professionals and citizens with staff support, is reviewing the city’s finances as a whole and will make full recommendations to the council in December on issues such as unfunded retired city employee pension and healthcare funds.
Approval of the 2017 renewal of the city employee retiree health insurance plan, Humana medicare advantage, was on Tuesday’s City Council meeting agenda, Lahanas said.
