Lansing council approves Monroe Manor rezoning and establishes RHID capped at $3.03 million

The Lansing City Council on Monday approved rezoning for the Monroe Manor subdivision and adopted an ordinance establishing a reinvestment housing incentive district (RHID) that limits reimbursements to $3,026,943, city staff said.

Developer Roman Hahn, owner of Circle h Land Development LLC, told the council the project is a 194‑lot single‑family infill subdivision east of North DeSoto Road, south of Caine Drive and north of Holiday Drive. Hahn said the total project budget is about $11,612,000 and that the RHID request represents roughly 26% of that cost. "This development, Monroe Manor, is a 194 homes that fall well within the categories of where, they highlighted that these homes should be," Hahn said, adding the developer expects to build roughly 40 homes per year in a three‑phase program.

Hahn described the RHID as pay‑as‑you‑go: "No money comes from the tax basis until those residents are purchased and and the individuals that live in those, homes start paying taxes on those homes." He said the developer expects the subdivision to create about $60,000,000 in market value and to generate more than $1 million a year in tax revenue after development.

The council approved two related ordinances: Ordinance 1140 rezoning the 25.5‑acre tract from R‑2P to R‑2 single‑unit residential, and Ordinance 1141 establishing the Monroe Manor RHID, approving the development plan and authorizing execution of associated development and funding agreements. Both measures passed on roll calls in which Councilmembers Gardner, Kirby, Kovaleski, Garvey, Robinson and Clements voted yes.

Ordinance 1141 sets the RHID maximum reimbursement at $3,026,943 and describes the RHID as pay‑as‑you‑go using the incremental increase in property tax from the new development; no bonds will be issued and the city "assumes no responsibility beyond the RHID increment generated by the property itself," staff said. The ordinance lists an 8‑year maximum term but staff and the developer told the council the financial plan and the developer's build schedule are based on a 6‑year program; the additional two years were described as a buffer the city and developer attorneys agreed to in case of unforeseen delays.

At the public hearing, several residents urged caution. Jerry Geese, chair of the Lansing Planning Commission, criticized how the housing study was characterized, saying, "The housing study doesn't say there's a need for 650 houses. It says there's a want," and warned that new households could require additional public services unless the city plans otherwise. Resident Jane Geese raised compatibility concerns about smaller lots and house sizes adjacent to existing neighborhoods. Jill Barnaby, who said she works at the justice center, urged the council to consider traffic safety near nearby intersections: "The traffic is horrific," she said, and asked who would fund intersection or safety improvements if accident risk increases.

Supporters spoke as well. Resident Tom Long argued the RHID would lower costs for homebuyers, saying, "the cost to the buyer is going to increase by $15,000 per house minimum" if the incentive is not approved, and urged the council to accept the tradeoff of temporary tax sharing for added housing supply.

The developer and staff also noted that the final plat for phase 1 had been approved about 30 days before the council hearing and that county and school district approvals remain part of the process; staff said those bodies have up to 30 days to act. City staff recommended adoption of the RHID ordinance and the council authorized execution of the development and funding agreements.

Council action follows the Planning Commission's recommendation to approve the rezoning; staff said the RHID would be split roughly among county, city and USD 469 over the RHID term. The ordinance requires the RHID reimbursements not exceed the increment generated by the project and specifies that, once reimbursements end, the city will receive the full tax revenue from the development.

The council's approvals move the project forward subject to the county and USD 469 approvals and to executing the development and funding agreements required by the RHID ordinance.