Relaxed zoning rules. Steeper roofs. Pre-application meetings.
Those aren’t just dull bureaucratic reforms. For Lawrence Mayor Deb Whitfield, this is part of a vision to make housing more affordable and easier to build.
The recommendations come from a task force that met once a week for almost a year. Their job: Figure out what Lawrence can do right now to address the housing affordability crisis.
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If Lawrence can do that, Whitfield sees benefits for the city of 50,000 people that stretch beyond housing. The report points out, for example, that the median price of an existing home doubled over 10 years, while the homeownership rate went down.
“Housing is not just an infrastructure issue,” Whitfield told Mirror Indy, “but it’s a public health issue too.”
And now that Whitfield has the task force’s recommendations — all 40 of them — she’s ready to create change in Lawrence.
“It’s not going to happen overnight,” Whitfield said. “We have to understand where our city is now.”
Speaking of where Lawrence is now …
Lawrence officials don’t fully control the city’s zoning, which lays out what kinds of structures can be built on a given lot. Instead, some proposals need approval from the Indianapolis Metropolitan Development Commission.
The arrangement is a quirk from UniGov, the 1970s consolidation of township governments in Marion County.
But Lawrence has been working on regaining full zoning control, a process Whitfield said Lawrence will complete later this year.
The final report from Whitfield’s task force puts the challenge ahead in stark terms.
- The production of new housing in Lawrence dropped by 53% between 2000 and 2020.
- From 2013 to 2023, the median price of an existing home went up 108%, and the homeownership rate dropped 3.7%.
- Median rent increased 50% from 2013 to 2023 — up to $1,608.
The report warns that these housing trends, if left unaddressed, “can lead to other even more serious problems.”
As Whitfield draws the connection between housing and health, one stat is especially relevant: The life expectancy for people living in the northern part of Lawrence is more than eight years better than it is for people in the southern part of the city.
Whitfield said she wants Lawrence residents to be proud of where they live.
“Every neighborhood has a distinct opportunity,” she said.
The recommendations
The task force’s recommendations are broken down into seven categories, ranging in topics from zoning reform to community land trusts.
Some of the highlights:
- Allow the conversion of single-family homes into duplexes and triplexes.
- Context: This is called “by-right” development, meaning a hearing isn’t required.
- Create a process that allows for 24-hour approval of conversions and smaller homes.
- Host meetings with home builders to get feedback on policy changes.
- Create a land bank of public land that could be transferred to developers for a small fee to speed up development.
- Context: Indianapolis revamped its land bank in 2025 as a way to create affordable housing.
- Explore the idea of a community land trust, which would give the city long-term ownership of the land and protect it from market volatility.
- Context: You can learn more about community land trusts here.
If any of this sounds familiar …
Some of the task force recommendations line up with legislation state lawmakers considered during the most recent legislative session.
Under House Enrolled Act 1001, homes and accessory dwelling units in residential areas would have been approved without a hearing.
The version of the bill that was eventually signed into law doesn’t have those requirements. Before they were removed, Whitfield joined around 30 other local government leaders in an IndyStar letter to criticize parts of the bill.
Whitfield said she didn’t disagree with what lawmakers were trying to accomplish. Even though much of the bill would have had an opt-out option, Whitfield said it’s important to make sure local governments have authority.
“Our needs may be different from the needs of Fishers or Noblesville or Carmel,” she said.
Now what?
The next step, Whitfield said, is to figure out which recommendations to prioritize.
Anything to do with zoning and permitting reform, for example, can likely happen quicker than some other suggestions.
Whitfield said she’ll talk more about housing at her State of the City address on April 16.
Mirror Indy, a nonprofit newsroom, is funded through grants and donations from individuals, foundations and organizations.
Mirror Indy reporter Tyler Fenwick covers housing and labor. Contact him at 317-766-1406 or tyler.fenwick@mirrorindy.org. Follow him on X @ty_fenwick and Bluesky @tyfenwick.bsky.social.
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