Michigan local leaders oppose housing affordability bills, call them government overreach

DozensoflocalofficialsacrossMichiganonTuesdayvoicedtheiroppositiontoagroupofbillsthataimtoincreaseMichigan’sstockofaffordablehousing. Thenine-billpackage,HouseBills5584through5532,wasintroducedbylawmakersonbothsidesoftheaislelastweekandwouldreformMichigan’szoninglaws.Ifpassed,thebillswouldputacaponlotsizerequirements,allowaccessorydwellingunitsonparcelswithsingle-familyhomes,andclarifystudiesduringreviewsfornewdevelopments,amongotherchanges.  However,somelocalleaderscallthelegislationa“one-size-fits-all”solutionandfearthatitwouldstripthemoflocaldecision-makingauthorityanddismisscommunityplanning.Theleadersurgestatelegislatorstoworkinpartnershipwithresidentsandlocalgovernment. “Whatthislegislationsays,intentionallyornot,thattheyearsofplanningdon’tmatter,thatlocalconsensusdoesn’tmatter.Thisplan,toLansing,isgarbage,”saidChrisBarnett,supervisorofOrionTownsh