This blog post is intended to explain the proposed changes to the zoning code the city is calling its “Build More Housing” ordinance, and Strong Towns Detroit’s reasons for supporting it. The ordinance will up for discussion and a potential vote by the City Planning Commission (CPC) and commissioners need to hear positive public input, so please join us either virtually or in person on October 2nd for the next City Planning Commission meeting to show your support. If you can’t make it, you can also write to the CPC at cpc@detroitmi.gov in support of the proposed zoning changes.

One of the key issues identified by voters, candidates, and the current city government is the lack of housing that meets residents’ needs. According to a report by Mortgage Calculator, Detroit has had the second-highest increase in housing prices in the country since the pandemic, with an average home price increase of 72%. As the city’s population grows for the first time in almost 60 years, we must ensure that demand doesn’t outpace supply and increase housing costs. Over the next decade, expected population growth without building much more housing will lead to higher rents, along with accelerated displacement, gentrification, and homelessness. City officials say we are currently adding 1,600 units each year, yet estimates indicate we need to add at least 2,700 units annually to meet demand, leaving a gap of 1,100 units. Providing adequate, economical housing for all Detroiters must be a priority for the city.

The good news is that the mayor’s office has introduced an ordinance to streamline the process of building housing and businesses by making modest changes to zoning rules – many of the same changes we argued for in our recent op-ed. The main goal behind these proposed changes is to build more housing to keep up with demand by supporting homeowners, small and medium-sized developers with less burdensome zoning requirements. A secondary goal is to gently densify the city in ways already familiar to Detroiters and strengthen the viability of local businesses. While we at Strong Towns would love to see bold proposals like removing mandatory parking minimum requirements altogether–the city’s changes would only reduce them–we believe that the proposed ordinance is a step in the right direction, and we support it. This blog post will explain the changes in detail so that Detroiters can understand and see for themselves how they might help our city create more dense, affordable housing.

What the Amendment Proposes:

1. Expand Housing Types in Residential (R2) Zones

• Legalize triplexes, fourplexes, and townhomes by right (no special approval).
• Allow conditional approval for buildings up to 12 units, 2–3 stories.

22% of Detroit’s land is zoned “R2”, which means that they allow single-family homes and duplexes “by right” (no special permit needed) currently (“R1” is single-family only, and is 40% of Detroit). Currently, if a developer wants to build a triplex or a quadruplex in an R2 zone, those are “conditional”, meaning that while allowed, they require a special hearing and permitting process. Larger buildings – six units, for example – would require a more extensive rezoning process, adding 6 months to the permitting process. These rules apply not only to new buildings but also to existing buildings that require renovations. If a quadruplex burns down in an R2 district, they would not be allowed by right to rebuild and would have to restart the conditional hearing processes to rebuild that same building. Because in many parts of the city we do have larger structures that predate these rules, this is not an insignificant issue.

With these changes, building a triplex, quadruplex or townhome in R2 zones is now allowed by right, without a special hearing, and buildings up to 12 units would be conditionally allowed. These housing sizes are often referred to in urbanist circles as “missing middle” housing, a more gentle form of density than the skyscrapers downtown, but more dense than the single-family homes and duplexes predominant throughout the city. The change will enable the construction of more infill housing and development in the neighborhoods. The expansion of housing types in R2 zones will also allow the rehab of existing vacant multifamily structures and the conversion of larger buildings into condos, creating a greater variety of housing and increasing access to affordable homeownership for Detroiters.

2. Make It Easier to Build on Vacant Lots

• Loosen setback, width, and lot coverage requirements.
  • Side setback: from 10.5 ft for lots under 43 ft  to 10 ft combined for all lots
  • Front setback: from 20 ft to 10 ft (but must match neighbors)
  • Rear setback: from 30 ft to 20 ft
  • Lot coverage: from 45% to 60%
• Allow multifamily homes to be built on individual parcels.

There are also requirements for how far away homes can be from the street in the front, the back of the parcel, and each other. You can see this if you go from older parts of the city, for example in parts of Islandview, where homes sit close to the sidewalk and can be very close to each other, to newer homes in the outer parts of the city and suburbs with larger front lawns and homes that sit further apart. Not only do these rules prevent a “cozier”, more urban feel like you see in the older neighborhoods, but they also often literally prevent any building of a home at all due to the mathematical realities of lot sizes and the requirements. The local chapter of the nonprofit Habitat for Humanity has had to purchase two lots side-by-side in order to build homes that meet these arbitrary legal requirements for families. In fact, over 85% of vacant lots are too small to meet current building rules, because they were originally occupied by now-demolished smaller homes that predated those rules. Again, this set of rules not only affects vacant lots but also existing homes – setback requirements have prevented residents from doing simple improvements like rebuilding their porches to their existing dimensions because those dimensions are no longer permitted.

The new rules don’t do away with requirements altogether, but they do lower them so that it will now be possible to build on one empty parcel rather than two. This will allow much more of the city’s land to be redeveloped and will make building homes cheaper for residents and nonprofits especially because they will only require one lot’s worth of land and the home itself will not need to be as large. These changes would also make it easier to rebuild on 26,000 side lots that have been sold to Detroiters, allowing current neighbors to take advantage of these changes and develop in their own neighborhood. 

3. Allow Multi-Family Buildings on Commercial Districts

• Permit residential-only developments in commercial districts zoned B2, B4, or B5.
• 582 buildings of this nature already exist, predating the current zoning rules.

Currently, conditional zoning (special approval) is required to build any housing in business districts. This change allows for housing, either as mixed use or residential-only buildings, to be built in business districts without going through the arduous and expensive rezoning process. Allowing multifamily in our business districts will support the revitalization of major commercial corridors, like Gratiot, with new foot traffic, and strengthen depopulated neighborhoods and civic organizations with new residents and members. It will also reduce the underutilization of large commercial spaces in new developments across the neighborhoods.

To ensure this change allows for flexibility now and in the future, the city should ensure that residential buildings built in these districts have an easy path towards converting some of their space to commercial space in the future. This way, we can help address housing needs now, while also allowing the buildings to change with the neighborhood and provide commercial space if and when it’s needed.

4. Provide Flexibility on Parking Lot Requirements

• Expand exemption for small commercial spaces and buildings under 6,000 sq. ft
• Non-industrial buildings near “high-frequency transit corridors” (buses every 20 minutes) will have parking requirements reduced by 30% or 20 spaces, whichever is less.
• Streamline approval for alternative parking plans provided by new businesses.

This change affects mandatory parking minimum requirements. The changes here are fairly modest, but a step in the right direction. There are too many city parking minimum rules to list in this document, but here are the ones targeted for change: currently, only buildings under 3,000 sq ft are exempt from parking requirements at all. For retail buildings above 3,000 sq ft and under 50,000 sq ft one parking space is required for every 200 sq ft of retail space. A parking space itself is 180 sq ft, meaning that Detroit’s parking requirements require practically every store larger than 3,000 sq ft to provide a parking lot roughly the size of the building itself. This is true regardless of the building’s location, and regardless of the business’s ability to afford such a lot–adding another barrier for small businesses just trying to get started. It also prevents creating more walkability in neighborhoods, by spreading out businesses with large parking lots and making things farther apart as well as less pleasant to walk in.

The modest changes in this proposal will extend the exemption for any parking requirements to buildings up to 6000 sq ft, reduce parking minimum requirements for buildings above 6000 sq ft along transit corridors by 30% or 20 spaces (whichever is less), and allow businesses more flexibility to submit an “alternative parking plan” and make a case for how much parking they actually need. These very modest changes will allow businesses and homeowners (because yes, even single-family homes have parking requirements) more flexibility to choose how much parking is necessary. If they have many people who live nearby who can walk or take transit to their business, they are not obligated to provide parking for everyone. They also have the flexibility to exceed the minimum parking requirements, if they feel that their customers will need it. In cities where parking requirements have been eliminated, parking is still being built, but the number of parking spots is based on the demand for spaces, rather than arbitrary rules that mandate the overbuilding of parking.

5. Allow Accessory Dwelling Units

• Allow Accessory Dwelling Units in R2 through R6 zones without special permission from the city.

Recently, the city has added language to allow Accessory Dwelling Units, or ADUs, to this proposal as a result of community feedback. An ADU is an independent dwelling detached from the main house, often in the backyard and referred to as a “carriage house”.  This change will allow ADUs in R2-R6 zones, whereas the current zoning ordinance bars ADUs in R2, and requires special city approvals for them in R3-R7 zones. Currently, in an R2 district, duplexes are allowed, but if the owner of a single family home wanted to build an ADU, that would constitute another dwelling on the property, which is not allowed. 

This rule is arbitrary and lessens choices for Detroiters to move family members nearby or to generate a little bit of extra income. Because it is financially easier to build on property you already own than property you must buy, and because of their relatively small footprint, ADU’s ease entry into homebuilding for people looking for a small income stream with their existing property, contributing to more affordable housing stock. ADUs also provide avenues for residents and families to live near one another while still maintaining adequate privacy. This is often especially desirable for seniors who want to age in place among their family.

While zoning may seem incredibly granular, it has far-reaching implications. Detroit is growing, and it’s expected to keep growing. Displacement is happening in cities across the country, and it’s a direct result of population growth that was not adequately accounted for. If we want to keep celebrating growth, we need to ensure we’re creating enough housing to protect and increase access to affordable homes. We invite you to envision Detroit’s zoning ordinance not as a framework for restricting your neighbors, but as a tool for equitably expanding access to housing and building a better, more resilient Detroit. 

The City Planning Commission heard the Mayor’s preliminary proposal in July and will be voting on the final proposal in a public meeting on October 2nd. Public comment will be possible both in-person and via Zoom. If this article has resonated with you, we encourage you to join us at the CPC meeting and make a 2-minute public comment in favor of the proposal, or  email the CPC at cpc@detroitmi.gov.

Note: The original article was edited to reflect that the proposal was introduced by the mayor’s office, not the Planning Department