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Ypsilanti council pauses enforcement against Design House and agrees to monitor LEAF applications after packed public comment
Summary
After dozens of residents urged the council to preserve community services, city staff said they will suspend enforcement actions against the Dzank (Design) House while the operator pursues a zoning amendment and business license; council and staff pledged to monitor a parallel matter involving LEAF Harm Reduction.
YPSILANTI, Mich. — After a packed public-comment period in which artists, neighbors and business owners urged the city to preserve a downtown arts hub, Ypsilanti city staff told the council they would hold off on enforcement that could have closed the Design (Dzank) House while the operator completes licensing and a zoning amendment.
The city manager told the council that a zoning change would create a pathway for the space to obtain a certificate of occupancy and said city staff would "suspend enforcement and allow them to operate" while the applicant moves through that process. Council members accepted that representation on the record and asked staff to memorialize it.
Scores of residents described the Design House as a community asset. Amanda Maemore, who said she runs the studio at 402 S. Huron, thanked the council for moving quickly after a cease-and-desist letter. Artist and neighbor Sarah Nisbett said the order would have been "a devastating blow" to programming that brings people downtown.
The council also discussed a related enforcement matter involving LEAF Harm Reduction, a community harm-reduction provider that received a separate cease-and-desist notice. Council members pressed the city attorney and manager about authority to delay enforcement and about making any suspension clear in writing.
Council member Estrella and others said they wanted a formal vote to ensure staff followed through because of a past instance where a staff decision had not been honored publicly. City legal staff and the city manager said the charter places day-to-day enforcement decisions in the city-manager role, but the manager committed to follow up with a written confirmation and to return zoning-definition items to the planning commission and council as needed.
What happens next: Staff said they will process the Dzank House's zoning amendment and business-license applications; council members and community members said they would watch to ensure staff follow-through.
