REDFORD TWP., Mich. (WXYZ) — Redford Township trustees approved a new ordinance allowing residents to grow vegetable gardens in their front yards, a change set to take effect Sept. 14, 2026.
The proposal passed 4-3 at Tuesday's Board of Trustees meeting after a second reading, following months of debate over aesthetics, blight concerns, and enforcement.
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Ryan Bednarski, 34, helped draft the ordinance after his mother received a citation last summer when he set up a front yard garden at her home. Bednarski said the backyard is too shaded for a garden.
"It feels like I made a change. It feels like I won," Bednarski said.
Under the new rules, residents who want a front yard garden must obtain a permit, which the township supervisor says will likely be free. Gardens must meet specific criteria, including setbacks and size limits.
"You have to have those setbacks four feet from the neighbors, three feet from the sidewalk, three feet from your driveway, and then you can have vegetables, native pollinator plants, meadowscaping. If you're going to grow vegetables, it needs to be in a raised bed four-to-12 inches, and you can't exceed 4 feet in total height with the vegetable plants," Bednarski said.
Permits can also be revoked for noncompliance.
"If you don't fix it, they would actually revoke your registration. So that's another part of the vegetables you need to register it," Bednarski said.
Not everyone supported the change. Resident Chris Flowers raised concerns about blight.
"I'm worried what would happen, where would we draw the line if we were to encourage people to grow things on their front lawn. The problem would get even worse," Flowers said.
Redford Township Treasurer Lily Cavanagh, who voted against the ordinance, cited enforcement as her primary concern.
"One of my biggest concerns is enforcement. I repeat, beauty is in the eye of the beholder," Cavanagh said.
Resident Scott White also questioned how the rules would be applied in practice.
"What about tomato cages, stakes, fencing, netting, hoses, buckets?" White said.
Linsaya VanDeusen, who also helped lead the push for the ordinance, called the vote a step forward for township residents.
"This is what we call an agreement, which is what we do here in the township," VanDeusen said.
"I'm very excited for the opportunity and most importantly for the freedoms that are maintained. So giving our township residents the ability to optimize their capacity to grow on their property, that's very important to me as a soil advocate," VanDeusen said.
The ordinance also addresses holiday yard decorations. The township supervisor says decorations will soon only be allowed 60 days before or after a holiday. Under that rule, Halloween decorations still displayed this time next year would be in violation.
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