On the July 20, 2026 agenda, Ann Arbor City Council will consider a resolution that proposes a six month moratorium on the licensing of short term rentals, in order to provide time for an analysis of their impact on housing in Ann Arbor. This agenda item appears to have been hastily and sloppily written, like several other recent resolutions in anticipation of elections on August 4.
DC-2 (26-1231) Resolution to Direct the City Attorney to Prepare a Moratorium on Short-term Rentals and Direct Staff to Review the City’s Short-term Rental Regulations
The resolution expresses sudden concern about how short term rentals (STR) impact housing in the City. These concerns were set aside and ignored when residents raised them during consideration of the recently approved Comprehensive Land Use Plan (CLUP). This week’s resolution fails to note any difference between the STR of a resident who makes extra money for a few football weekends and the STRs of investors who convert homes or apartments into unsupervised hotels. It appears that a six month moratorium on STR licenses would apply to residents and investors alike.
In just the last six months, the City began enforcement of the short term rental regulation that a previous City Council approved six years ago. Residents have been surprised by recent notifications that they are out of compliance with this ordinance. Many had no idea the ordinance even existed. Traditional bed and breakfast owners were caught by surprise because they didn’t realize the ordinance applied to their businesses. Some residents have been out of compliance for five years.
The short term rental ordinance was approved in September 2020, right before Mayor Christopher Taylor regained control of City Council. At their third regular meeting, a new majority of Council – including current members Lisa Disch, Travis Radina, Jen Eyer, and Erica Briggs – voted in support of loopholes to that ordinance for the benefit of investors who had established STRs in residential neighborhoods. Potential enforcement of the ordinance-with-loopholes was ignored for nearly three years.
I know this because in 2023, I was contacted by a vendor who had enforcement software for short term rental regulations. I was no longer on Council, but a representative from Granicus called me because they were struggling to get the attention of anyone at City Hall. Granicus is a respected company that the City already uses for software like Legistar. They had a product that would help the city identify unlicensed short term rentals and bring them into compliance with the ordinance. Granicus wanted to connect with someone at City Hall to share data about Ann Arbor, explain how their software could help the City enforce the ordinance.
In 2023, I sent an email to three staff at City Hall, explaining that the rep was “interested in talking to someone about what Granicus has to offer – with two days notice his team can generate some stats specific to Ann Arbor.” In response, a City staffer replied to me:
“Thank you for bringing this to us. Although, we have recently signed with another company for a similar service.”
The City had clearly not signed with another company. They followed the lead of a City Council that was even less interested in enforcing the ordinance or limiting short term rentals.
In 2023, a developer requested a rezoning in order to create full time short term rentals in a new development, across from the Salvation Army. The developer happened to be a campaign donor to the Mayor and Council Members Jen Eyer and Dharma Akmon. Every current member of City Council – with the exception of Jon Mallek – approved that rezoning. For the proposed “Southtown” development, an entire block was rezoned to permit 30% of housing units to be used as full-time STRs. The block that previously contained homes and apartments has now been razed, and the developer is in bankruptcy. The zoning remains: any future development can be 30% short term rentals instead of homes and apartments for people to live in.
The sponsors of this week’s resolution include Mayor Taylor and Council Member Radina, who in 2020, supported loopholes to protected full-time STRs in neighborhoods. Other sponsors – Council Members Harrison, Akmon, and Cornell – supported the 2023 rezoning that will permit more full-time STRs in the future.
Last year, the Michigan Daily wrote an article about that campaign donor, Heidi Poscher, who pushed for loopholes in the original STR ordinance and was later granted the rezoning to create more dedicated short term rentals at Southtown. The Daily reported that she is a felon, who was convicted of fraud in California and conspiracy to commit money laundering in West Virginia, through companies incorporated in Ohio. In the year since the Michigan Daily article reported on her influence at City Hall, I’ve been researching how this could happen: how was our city government taken in by someone who was so untrustworthy? I’ve made several trips to Ohio and West Virginia to understand how other local (and state) governments were taken in.
If you listen to podcasts, I have a new project to share: HOLLOW HYPE. In the first four episodes, I explain how Ann Arbor’s short term rental ordinance was introduced by staff, debated and ultimately approved in 2020, just a few months before a new majority of Council took office and chose to represent investors.
HOLLOW HYPE is available where you get podcasts or you can listen online at HollowHype.com
Links to more podcast players: HollowHype.com/subscribe
