Despite the challenges the City of Flint has faced in recent years, such as the loss of over 50% of the manufacturing jobs for the region, committed groups and individuals are working toward creating new opportunities for the city, the county and their residents. In the arena of land management, one organization has made a huge impact throughout the county and particularly in the City of Flint is the Genesee County Land Bank Authority (GCLBA). Responding to the recommendations of the Michigan Land Use Leadership Council, the State of Michigan passed new land bank legislation in 2004. This legislation created a tool for municipalities allowing them to better manage the problems associated with foreclosed properties and eliminated a lot of the red tape that slowed the process of removing dilapidated structures and redeveloping abandoned property. The GCLBA, the first of its kind in the state, works through a new system of land disposition that renews urban properties through redevelopment and investment. The GCLBA is funded with proceeds from the tax foreclosure process, and is able to purchase land with those proceeds in order to redevelop it with the communities needs in mind.

In the rest of the Genesee County area, new development has led to large losses of agricultural land and open space. However, in recent years, farmland has been recognized as being a sustainable and cost-effective use of land. This is because while farmland accrues less in tax assessments, it also accrues considerably less in service costs than residential land. When the math is done, the expenditure/revenue ratio favors agriculture, while residential land can actually cost a municipality more in service costs than it contributes in tax revenue. The cost of services provided by municipalities such as water, sewer, police and fire grows as the service area expands. This cost is the primary support for use of compact, mixed-use developments that utilize land within existing service areas and slowing expansion to more rural areas of townships.

The trend of increased development and land consumption is supported by state enabling legislation that provides incentives for low density development which consumes large quantities of land. Two pieces of legislation in particular have this kind of impact. The Headlee Amendment of 1978 encourages growth by limiting the ability of local governments to collect taxes and encourages growth by rolling back local property taxes if local growth exceeds inflation. Proposal A, passed in 1994, places a cap on property tax revenue increases but excludes new construction from the formula making new development the only effective way for local government to increase its tax base. Furthermore, Michigan is a “home rule” state where each municipality sets its own zoning regulations. With limited incentives to work with their neighbors, each municipality sets it own agenda which leads to less cohesive planning at township borders.

The Michigan Land Use Leadership Council also recommended cooperation between jurisdictions. This intergovernmental, or multi-jurisdictional, cooperation requires municipalities to communicate with surrounding communities in order to address land use issues on a regional level as well as examine the potential cost-saving if they choose to engage in service sharing opportunities. In Genesee County, the Southern Lakes Planning Initiative (SLPI) which consists of four townships and two cities in southern Genesee and northern Livingston Counties is attempting to address the land use issues associated with increasing growth and development within their region. More information on intergovernmental cooperation and the SLPI can be found on the Multi-jurisdictional Planning section of this website.

A study published by the University of Michigan-Ann Arbor, Urban and Regional Planning Program titled “Guiding Growth in Genesee County” details the trends described here and offers recommendations for coordinated and efficient development within Genesee County.


The study suggests four goals for Genesee County.