LAKETOWN TWP, Mich. — Laketown Township is weighing significant changes to its short-term rental rules before a current moratorium on new licenses expires at the end of June.
According to officials, the township currently has 91 legally licensed short-term rentals and about 100 unlicensed ones. No new licenses can be issued while the moratorium is in place, giving the planning commission time to determine where short-term rentals should and should not be allowed.
At Wednesday night's planning commission meeting, leaders discussed a proposal that would amend the zoning ordinance to define short-term rentals and establish where they are permitted.
Under the proposal, short-term rentals would be classified as commercial properties. They would be allowed in mixed-use zoned areas but restricted in agricultural and residentially zoned areas, including R1, R1.5, R2 and R3.
In those restricted zones, freestanding homes, where the owner does not live on the property, would not be permitted as short-term rentals. Only attached and detached accessory dwelling units could be used as short-term rentals.
The proposal would also reduce the maximum number of guests allowed in a short-term rental from 16 to 10.
Short-term rentals that are currently licensed would be grandfathered in under the proposed changes.
The planning commission decided Wednesday to formalize the proposal's language so a public hearing can be held at its next meeting on April 1. The commission would then vote on whether to recommend the proposal to the township board.
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