Shelby Council Approves Zoning Update, Water Main Fix

The village council adopted a revised zoning ordinance and map and approved a Bennett Street water main replacement by a 4-2 vote.

Updated on Nov. 4, 2026 in City Hall

Isometric editorial illustration of a single pipe lying in an open trench beside a curb, with a flat parcel-grid of pale ground behind it. — Shelby village council adopted a revised zoning ordinance and map and approved a $20,000 Bennett Street water main replacement by a 4-2 vote on Monday. AI Illustration. Upload story photo >

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Shelby Village Council approved an updated zoning ordinance and map on October 26, 2026, after a process developed over about one year with grant-funded planning. The council also approved a $20,000 Bennett Street water main replacement by a 4-2 vote.

Why it matters

The zoning update sets land-use rules for the village, while the water main work addresses lead infrastructure being phased out of service statewide. Council members postponed the zoning vote from October 12 to October 26 to review the lengthy document.

The council approved a $20,000 Bennett Street water main fix, funded with $13,000 from the Water Fund and $7,000 from the Local Streets Fund, against an estimated $130,000 cost if delayed. Council members did not address the full scope of zoning provisions in the extraction, and the Bennett Street work completion date was not provided.

The players

Shelby Village Council

The elected governing body of the village of Shelby, which approved the zoning ordinance and related measures on October 26, 2026.

LOVE, Inc.

A nonprofit organization that will purchase the newly created parcel at 186 N Michigan Ave following the council's lot division approval.

The details

The zoning ordinance was developed over about a year through a grant-funded planning process and received a Planning Commission public hearing on September 15, 2026. The council also approved a lot division for 186 N Michigan Ave, which LOVE, Inc. will purchase, and a Consumers Energy easement to relocate overhead power lines in a village-owned alley.

Fall 2024: School Street streetlights stopped working.
September 15, 2026: Planning Commission held a public hearing on the zoning ordinance.
October 26, 2026: Council approved the zoning ordinance, lot split, easement and Bennett Street water main.

Political Context

The Bennett Street replacement responds to the statewide phase-out of lead water infrastructure, which the council is addressing locally before the work becomes more costly. The council's decision to delay the zoning vote two weeks for additional review reflects a deliberate process for a lengthy land-use document.

Residents along Bennett Street will see the water main replaced, which avoids a potential cost increase beyond $130,000 if the work were postponed. The downtown streetlight removal planned for spring 2027 will change lighting on the affected blocks.

The takeaway

Local infrastructure decisions often cost more when delayed, as the Bennett Street water main illustrates. Residents interested in land use can follow future council meetings for implementation of the updated zoning map.

What happens next

The streetlight removal for the Downtown Streetscape Project is proposed for spring 2027, with its expenditure to be incorporated into the 2027-2028 budget.