Ann Arbor renters would gain new legal protections to organize against landlords under an ordinance the City Council approved on first reading Tuesday, Sept. 8.
The proposed law, filed as ORD-26-24, would add a Tenants Bill of Rights and a Tenants Right to Organize chapter to the city code. It spells out the right to post and distribute information, contact other tenants and hold meetings on rental premises to build tenant organizations.
Landlords would be prohibited from interfering with those activities or allowing others to do so. Violations would carry civil infraction penalties starting at $500 for a first offense and up to $1,000 for each additional violation.
The ordinance still needs a second reading, with a public hearing, before it can take effect.
How the ordinance differs from the tenant union's draft
The Ann Arbor Tenants Union (AATU) had pushed for the ordinance and presented its own draft to the Ann Arbor Renters Commission earlier in 2026, according to a2council.com's meeting recap. The version council advanced differs in two key ways.
The AATU draft included broader anti-retaliation language prohibiting landlords from threatening, penalizing or discriminating against tenants who exercise their rights. That language covered intentionally delaying maintenance, revoking access to amenities and refusing to renew a lease. The council version does not include those provisions.
The AATU draft also proposed stiffer fines: $1,000 for a first violation and $2,000 for subsequent offenses, double what the council-advanced ordinance sets.
The ordinance does carve out exceptions. Landlords can impose "reasonable limitations on time, manner, and place of activities," according to the ordinance text. Service reductions applied uniformly to all tenants and unrelated to organizing would also not count as interference.
Council voted 10-0 to give the ordinance initial approval. "It's another important step toward strengthening Ann Arbor's ever-expanding tenants bill of rights," said Mayor Pro Tem Travis Radina, D-3rd Ward, the ordinance's lead sponsor, according to MLive.
The AATU has a track record of shaping Ann Arbor rental policy. The group helped pass a 2021 ordinance preventing landlords from asking tenants to re-sign leases fewer than 150 days before expiration and pushed through a near-complete ban on non-refundable pre-tenancy fees in January 2025, according to In These Times.
Band shell demolition approved
In other business Sept. 8, council approved a $481,765.72 contract with Inner City Contracting, LLC to demolish the West Park band shell. The Works Progress Administration built the structure in 1938. About 55 years ago, it hosted acts including MC5 and the Grateful Dead.
"This has served our community well for many decades and I'm excited to see what the next chapter looks like," Council Member Erica Briggs said at the meeting, according to MLive.
Council also approved a notice of intent to issue up to $10 million in capital improvement bonds for park improvements. Council Member Watson was absent from the meeting.
The second reading, including a public hearing, is scheduled for Tuesday, Sept. 22. Ann Arbor residents can track the ordinance through the city's Legistar page.
