Central Ohio Landlord Policy Update: Week of July 13, 2026

Franklin: Short-Term Rental Regulations Take Shape

Status: Under discussion (no vote scheduled)

Franklin’s Planning Commission used its July 8 work session to open a conversation on short-term rental regulation, alongside a separate item clarifying how the city distinguishes distribution centers from warehouses. Nothing has been drafted into ordinance language yet, and no vote is on the calendar.

Ohio still has no statewide preemption law for short-term rentals, which leaves individual cities broad latitude to set their own licensing rules, land-use restrictions, and nuisance standards. That gap is why STR ordinances have been popping up across Ohio municipalities through the first half of 2026 (the Statehouse News Bureau documented the trend back in May), and it’s why Franklin’s discussion matters beyond city limits. Once one Central Ohio suburb writes an STR framework, neighboring jurisdictions tend to borrow the language.

If you operate a short-term rental in Franklin, or you’re weighing whether to convert a unit into one, this is the moment to watch the docket rather than wait for a public hearing notice. Early-stage planning commission discussions are where the real parameters (permit caps, owner-occupancy requirements, minimum stay lengths) get shaped before they ever reach a formal reading.

Elsewhere in Ohio, cities writing new STR ordinances this year have generally landed on one of two models: an annual permit system with an occupancy or density cap, or a zoning-based approach that restricts short-term rentals to specific districts and requires the underlying use to remain a primary or owner-occupied residence. Which direction Franklin leans will shape whether existing STR operators get grandfathered in or have to retrofit their operation to a new standard. Ask your leasing or property management contact to confirm whether a unit is titled as an STR or a standard rental before this framework solidifies; the distinction may matter more once Franklin’s rules take shape.

View the agenda packet

Grove City: Wet Basement Program Amendment Passes

Status: Just passed

Grove City Council passed Ordinance C-25-26 on July 6, amending the city’s existing Wet Basement Program (originally established under Ordinance C-32-20). The measure moved alongside a separate sign code amendment covering electronic message centers, both approved the same evening.

The Wet Basement Program governs how the city handles chronic basement flooding complaints and the repair obligations that follow, so any amendment to it has a direct line to landlord maintenance duties. Because this already passed rather than sitting at a hearing stage, compliance implications start now, not at some future vote.

If you own a Grove City rental with a documented history of basement water intrusion, or a tenant has flagged one recently, confirm with the city whether your property falls under the amended program terms before your next quarterly inspection turns up a surprise.

Programs like this typically work off a complaint-and-inspection cycle: a resident reports water intrusion, the city inspects, and the property owner is given a defined window to make corrective repairs before the issue escalates to a code violation. An amendment to the underlying ordinance can shift that window, change what counts as a qualifying repair, or adjust who bears the inspection cost. None of that is confirmed for this specific amendment yet, which is exactly why it’s worth pulling the ordinance text directly rather than assuming the prior rules still apply.

View the council recap

Worthington: Zoning Map Changes and a November Ballot Question

Status: Introduced, public hearings pending

Worthington introduced several zoning-related ordinances for public hearing on July 6, including a proposal to change the effective date for zoning regulation amendments generally. Two specific rezoning requests are in the mix: a change from S-1 Special to PUD Planned Use District at 445 E. Granville Rd, and R-10 Low Density Residential to V-M Veterans Memorial at 700 Morning St.

The bigger story sits underneath these individual map changes. Worthington voters will decide a Charter amendment on zoning authority at a special election on November 3, 2026. Depending on the outcome, the process for how future zoning changes get approved in Worthington could look different by early 2027.

Owners with property near either rezoning site should track the public hearing schedule directly. Everyone else with Worthington holdings should mark November 3 on the calendar; a shift in zoning authority affects density, use permissions, and ultimately what your property is worth to a future buyer.

The two site-specific changes are worth noting even if you don’t own adjacent to them. A shift from S-1 Special to PUD Planned Use District generally opens a parcel to a broader, more flexible mix of uses than the special district it replaces, while R-10 Low Density Residential moving to V-M Veterans Memorial reflects a use-specific redesignation rather than a density change. Individually these are routine map maintenance. Combined with a Charter question on zoning authority itself, they’re a signal that Worthington is actively revisiting how zoning decisions get made, not just what gets zoned.

Read the ordinance introductions

Westerville: Supplement to Ordinance No. 2026-13 Under Discussion

Status: Under discussion (no vote scheduled)

Westerville’s July 7 council agenda included discussion of a supplement to Ordinance No. 2026-13. The city hasn’t published the specific text changes publicly yet, and no vote is scheduled.

Westerville is one of the denser rental markets in Central Ohio, and supplements to standing ordinances like this one tend to land on the details that matter most to landlords day-to-day: occupancy limits, licensing renewal terms, or nuisance abatement procedures. A “supplement” is often a narrower fix than a full rewrite, but narrower doesn’t mean smaller in impact if it touches a permit or inspection requirement you rely on.

Westerville owners should request the specific language once it’s available rather than assume this is routine housekeeping. We’ll track this one and report back once the supplement’s contents are public.

A “supplement” to a standing ordinance usually means council is adding a section rather than rewriting the whole thing, which keeps the scope narrow but can still change how an existing rule gets enforced. If your Westerville rental has come up for a licensing renewal or occupancy inspection in the past year, the underlying Ordinance No. 2026-13 is the one worth pulling up now, so you know exactly what the supplement is being layered onto.

View the meeting agenda

Powell: City-Wide Zoning Code Rewrite Up This Tuesday

Status: Upcoming meeting (scheduled for July 15, 2026)

Powell City Council takes up Case 2025-12ADM this Tuesday, July 15: a city-wide rewrite of the zoning code meant to modernize use classifications and eliminate categories that are either undefined or overly narrow. Staff is also recommending that the Historic Downtown Advisory Commission be folded into Planning & Zoning, consolidating review duties into one body.

A completed historic survey identified a potential local historic district covering the four corners and northwest quad of downtown Powell. If that designation moves forward, it would add another layer of review for any property inside the boundary, on top of whatever the broader zoning rewrite changes for permitted uses and density citywide.

A full zoning code rewrite touches every property in the jurisdiction, not just downtown parcels. If you own in Powell, this Tuesday’s meeting is worth watching live rather than catching up after the fact.

Rewrites like this one tend to reorganize use categories rather than eliminate uses outright, but “reorganize” can still mean your current use gets reclassified into a category with different parking, setback, or occupancy rules attached. Rental duplexes and small multifamily properties are the type most likely to shift categories in a modernization pass like this, since older codes often lump them in with either single-family or larger multifamily without a clean middle tier. Confirm your property’s new classification once the rewrite is adopted, not just its old one.

View the meeting packet

Also On the Radar

New this week:

• Plain City [NEW]: The Economic Development Committee discussed updates to the city’s comprehensive plan and zoning code on July 1. The comprehensive plan’s public comment period closed June 3, and a new zoning and development fee schedule takes effect July 23. View the meeting packet
• Late pickups:
• Plain City [STALE – LATE PICKUP, originally from June 22]: Staff recommended passage of Ordinance 20-2026, amending the Planning and Zoning Code for internal consistency. View the meeting packet
• Gahanna [STALE – LATE PICKUP, originally from June 15]: An ordinance was introduced and will receive further readings at upcoming council meetings. View Gahanna’s legislation tracker
• Gahanna [STALE – LATE PICKUP, originally from June 15]: Council discussed the timing of upcoming readings for a separate ordinance, with no additional questions raised. View Gahanna’s legislation tracker
• ⚠ Past the 14-day cutoff, flagged for removal from the published post — see note below:
• Fairfield [STALE – LATE PICKUP, originally from June 3]: The city updated its zoning code to regulate accessory buildings in commercial districts, including new maximum square footage limits. This is already in effect. View the meeting minutes
• Sunbury [STALE – LATE PICKUP, originally from June 3]: Council approved Ordinance No. 2026.10 and advanced other measures through second readings; a related ordinance completed its third reading June 8. View the meeting minutes
• Hebron [STALE – LATE PICKUP, originally from June 1]: An ordinance advanced through its second reading with no action taken. View the meeting summary

Stay Ahead of the Curve

Twelve items this week, and the pattern holds: the ones worth acting on now are the ones that already passed (Grove City, Fairfield, Sunbury), and the ones worth watching closely are still in the discussion stage (Franklin, Westerville, Powell). Check back next week for the next round, or reach out to RLPM if you want a second set of eyes on how any of these affect a specific property.