McKenna & Associates and Livonia planning staff presented a draft amendment to the city’s 2021 master plan focused on housing policy, calling the proposed volume Book 5: “How to Make Housing Sustainable.” Donovan, the McKenna presenter, said the work is funded by a Michigan State Housing Development Authority (MSHDA) housing‑readiness grant of $45,000 and is intended to expand the 2021 plan’s housing content with updated demographics, housing data, a housing strategy and an implementation program.

Donovan told the commission the draft adds detailed housing demographics (2023–2024 data), explores rentership and cost‑burden metrics, and advances five goals and roughly 28 objectives tied to a timeline for short, medium and long implementation steps. The draft emphasizes “middle‑housing” typologies—duplexes, townhomes, small apartment buildings and mixed residential developments—to increase housing choice in a largely built‑out city. Donovan said concept sites (including Laurel Park and the former Syrah site) were used to test how mixed housing typologies could fit Livonia’s character.

Public engagement to date included an April open house with about 50 participants; feedback favored townhomes and cottage‑court concepts but raised concerns about parking and traffic. Commissioners asked for more explicit metrics and targets for the 20‑year horizon (population or housing‑production goals), additional mapping and an analysis of the age distribution of the housing stock; Donovan agreed to add clearer goal metrics and more housing‑age data in the next draft.

Donovan outlined next steps: staff will distribute the draft to commissioners for review between December and January; the consultant will return in January to request authorization to distribute the draft publicly for a 45‑day comment period; a public hearing and a request to forward the amendment to City Council would follow, with a target for final adoption steps in April. The commission voted to receive and file the presentation for further review and directed staff and the consultant to provide the requested metrics and mapping.

Next steps: McKenna will update the draft with metrics and housing‑age data, return in January, and—if authorized—begin a 45‑day public comment period before additional public hearings and eventual Council consideration.