Planning Commission Regular Meeting Meeting

Detailed briefing

Harbor Springs Planning Commission Regular Meeting — January 19, 2023 • The commission approved the December 15, 2022 regular-meeting minutes and approved amended January 5 special-meeting minutes after correcting attendance-related errors. It also reelected Bill Mulder as chair and Mark Boudet as vice chair for 2023. • Short-term rentals dominated the meeting. The commission reviewed a possible approach that would continue annual licensing, potentially cap licenses only in specified single-family residential districts, use complete-application date and time for allocation, and leave several other districts uncapped. No cap number or final policy recommendation was adopted. • Residents and commissioners described sharply different concerns. Supporters of limits cited neighborhood continuity, uncertainty about who is nearby, residential zoning expectations, and housing availability for families and workers. Opponents said many STR owners maintain homes, support visitor activity and local businesses, and should retain property-use rights; some urged direct enforcement of individual nuisance problems rather than broader restrictions. • The commission discussed unresolved policy details including a waitlist, whether licenses should transfer when a property is sold, whether owners could move a license between properties, limits on multiple licenses, attrition if the cap is not fully used, and a possible limited-use license for homeowners renting only a few weeks annually. No decisions were made on those details. • A speaker raised an October 2022 Court of Appeals decision concerning whether STRs are a residential use. Staff said the decision did not say STRs could not be in residential districts, but it could affect how the city considers permitted uses. The commission agreed to pause further STR action and seek city-attorney feedback before returning to the issue. • The commission concurred with maintaining its 2023 meeting schedule and recommended City Council approve proposed planning and zoning fee changes. Staff said the revisions would help offset software and administrative costs, while commissioners also raised affordability concerns. Worth watching: • City-attorney guidance on the Court of Appeals decision and its relevance to Harbor Springs STR regulation. • Whether City Council extends or changes the residential-area STR moratorium, which staff said is in place for the first half of 2023. • City Council action on the proposed planning and zoning fee schedule. Upcoming: Optional Planning Commission training on zoning trends is scheduled for Saturday, January 28, from 9:30 a.m. to noon. Why it matters: The unresolved STR policy could shape residential neighborhoods, housing availability, property use, and local visitor activity.

Agenda items

• 5A · Election of Chair / Vice Chairdiscussed
• 5B · Discussion - Short Term Rentalsdiscussed
• 5C · Approval of 2023 Schedulediscussed
• 5D · Review of Bylawsdiscussed
• 5E · Planning and Zoning Fee Schedulediscussed

No open public follow-ups are linked to this meeting yet.

Related issues

• Short-Term Rentalsdiscussed