Draft Short-Term Rental Ordinance Public Meeting on Wednesday, June 28
Press release from the County of Humboldt:
The County of Humboldt reminds the community that an ordinance is being prepared to allow the use of short-term rentals (STRs) in unincorporated Humboldt County.
The Planning & Building Department will host a virtual public meeting on Wednesday, June 28 to receive public input on the draft ordinance, so it can be improved before it is reviewed by the Planning Commission and presented to the Board of Supervisors for consideration.
Background
On June 6, 2023, the Humboldt County Board of Supervisors adopted an urgency ordinance establishing a temporary moratorium on the establishment and permitting of short-term rental units in unincorporated Humboldt County. The moratorium was adopted to discourage short-term rental operators from rushing to initiate new STRs in advance of the adoption of a proposed Short-Term Rental Ordinance. If the ordinance is adopted giving deference to existing short-term rental properties, STRs initiated after June 6 will not be acknowledged as existing due to this moratorium.
Many community members do not realize STRs are not currently allowed in unincorporated Humboldt County. While there are many residences operating as STRs in Humboldt County, enforcement against these rentals is pursued only in response to complaints from the public. The adoption of the moratorium does not change this approach or change anything for existing short-term rental operators.
The purpose of the draft Short-Term Rental Ordinance is to allow some residences in unincorporated Humboldt County to be used for STRs while protecting the character of the neighborhoods where they are located and to preserve residential units for people and families who live and work in Humboldt County.
To learn more and review the draft ordinance documents, please visit the Short-Term Rental Ordinance web page.
Public Meeting
A virtual public meeting will be held at 6 p.m. on Wednesday, June 28, to discuss the proposed ordinance. The meeting will feature a presentation of the draft ordinance and attendees will have the opportunity to ask questions and share concerns, ideas, and input.
To register to attend the Short-Term Rental Ordinance Public Meeting, please visit bit.ly/HumSTRO.
Before joining the meeting, attendees are encouraged to download the most recent version of Zoom to be able to fully participate. Closed captioning will be provided.
This meeting will be recorded and posted on the County of Humboldt’s YouTube channel. Attendees may choose to keep their cameras off and not use their full names. The purpose for posting the recorded videos is to make it available as a resource for community members.
For more information, please email Associate Planner Keenan Hilton at [email protected] or call (707) 268-3722.
Join the discussion! For rules visit: https://kymkemp.com/commenting-rules
Comments system how-to: https://wpdiscuz.com/community/postid/10599/
The county will fuck the community. Just like it did to the marijuana industry, Now the construction industry, with no power for up to ten years. That are the real facts from PGE not hearsay bullshit from John Ford. I work with PGE and have known for years about the power issues. Now they are going to kill the tourism industry. There are numerous foreclosures and rentals available all over southern Humboldt.
Hotels belong in commercial districts. Ban them in residential zones. We need homes and investments, not speculative piggy banks. Only allow in a primary residence with the owner on site which will help people make ends meet instead of encouraging conversion of needed housing. Foolish realestate speculators do not deserve bailouts which grandfathering in the early rule breakers is.
Good luck. The rich do as they wish.
“Housing” should not be a commodity.
fucking disgusting
Cap the number of single family homes a person can own. That will make inventory skyrocket and prices fall.
Keep hotels in commercial zones. Only allow if in a primary residence with host on site. Reward productive investments not real estate speculation. Don’t grandfather in the early actors who caused the problem and have been benefiting from it, get those units back to being homes.
I think that it is a mistake to open up Vrbos and Airbnbs permitting in residential areas. It wasn’t that way before. Vrbos and Airbnbs are disruptive. While they might benefit some, they cause harm to many locals seeking to rent or buy homes.
People please be aware of their adverse impact. Resort communities or destinations are particularly vulnerable to takeover by these businesses causing the character and feeling of the community to quickly change. Locals and traditional summer people are displaced when investors realize how much they can make in the vacation rental business with nightly fees upward of $300.
Vrbos almost immediately artificially inflate rental costs. That means fewer homes on the market for long-term renters as their options dry up. Soon, it is impossible for most families to live in their current neighborhoods. Who remains when long-term residents are priced out. Just those who already own a home and don’t rent it out short term. New families won’t be moving in, nor will young couples struggling to pay the rent. Gone are teachers, artists, EMTs, restaurant workers and store clerks and all the people who must compete with vacationers’ budgets. Home owners tired of the all-night noise, parking problems, strangers wandering around may sell out, often to a short-term rental entrepreneur. This inflates house prices. Lake Arrowhead Vrbo investors were willing to pay almost a 50% premium. The bottom line is that in resort type areas like coastal and river corridor Humboldt, locals will never be able to buy a home.
Moreover, “the influx of out-of-town visitors upsets the peaceful enjoyment of long-standing residential neighborhoods. Short-term renters have no stake in the community, and therefore no reason to care how the neighborhood around them suffers from their vacation activities. Non-residential zoning exists to accommodate the inevitable disruptions of tourism [paraphrased from Keep Neighborhoods First].
Citing the San Diego City Council, “It stands to reason that the “residential character” of a neighborhood is threatened when a significant number of homes—at least 12% in this case according the record– are occupied not by permanent residents but by a stream of occupants staying a weekend, a week or even 29 days. These occupants do not participate in local government, coach little league, or lead a Scout troop. They do not volunteer for the [Fire Safe Council] or keep an eye on an elderly neighbor. Vacation rentals essentially create, and are in fact a nuisance in communities…”
Fortunately, Vrbos and Airbnbs are illegal in single-family residential areas of Humboldt County but many are operated illegally. There will be pressures by investors; false arguments that the taxes help the homeless or create low-pay tourism jobs, when in fact they are one of the causes of rising housing prices.
Love the way the County has twisted the radio advertisements, “An Ordinance to allow short term rentals”. It’s actually an Ordinance to eliminate almost all short term rentals and another nail in the coffin to the southern Humboldt area. Did the BOS direct the Planning Department to carry this out? Or is the Planning Department setting policy?
“Humboldt County Planning and Building Director John Ford said that there are an estimated 1,000 short-term rentals operating in Humboldt County. Many rental operators pay transient occupancy taxes, which in fiscal year 2021 to 2022, made up roughly 30% of the total amount collected by the county.” Times-Standard June 7, 2023
According to HomeToGo.com there are 1,757 Vacation Rentals in the County, 82 Vacation Dwelling Units (VDU’s) in Shelter Cove. I wonder if the County has reached out to the property owners of these units? Why not grandfather those units where the property owners have been paying the Transient Occupancy Tax (TOT)?
I doubt there are 750+/- VDU’s in the incorporated cities. It appears Ford may have underestimated the number of VDU’s in the County. Regardless, eliminating VDU’s everywhere except Shelter Cove will have a significant ($1,000,000+/-) impact on TOT revenue the County collects. In addition, there will be significant staff costs in monitoring and enforcing the ordinance. Will be costly to a County with a $13,000,000+/- deficit.
In Southern Humboldt since the collapse of the cannabis industry, I hear that housing demands have actually decreased. This is reflected by a significant increase in foreclosures, decrease in property values and the number of rentals available. In addition, I believe the number of evictions have increased because of the inability to pay rent because many folks no longer have cannabis associated employment.
Because of the collapse of the cannabis industry, the County should be encouraging visitor serving accommodations to help facilitate much needed economic development especially in the Southern Humboldt and Willow Creek areas.
Many people, families do not want to or cannot afford two (2) or three (3) motels rooms for family vacations.
The only overnight accommodations between Redway and Rio Dell is the Miranda Gardens, 15 units. There were quite a few motels, cabins, motor lodges back in the day, at least 300 units. See Diane Hawk’s Touring the Old Redwood Highway: Humboldt County.
Has the Economic Development Division or the CAO’s office prepared an economic impact analysis?
They have included B&B’s by definition (Operator must reside on-site). B&B’s are already regulated, §314-44 HCC. They are separate uses. Do not muddy the waters!
VDU’s are maintained. They actually increase the values in the neighborhood, because they are regularly maintained. Many rental properties are not maintained and become a public nuisance to the neighborhood and community, actually decreasing property values and necessitating the need for Code Enforcement.
Of course they have provided an exception through a Special Permit process, which will cost thousands and take months to process. All the need to do is develop performance standards through a non-discretionary process.
BTW, for some reason AOB homes will not be allowed as VDU’s. Why are not AOB houses allowed? They have been approved for occupancy subject to the following inspections.
REQUIRED INSPECTIONS:
1. Temporary Electric
2. Under-floor Plumbing
3. Under-floor Mechanical
4. Rough Plumbing
5. Rough Mechanical
6. Rough Electric including installation of electrical boxes for smoke detectors and carbon
monoxide alarms
7. Bedroom Egress Compliance
8. Insulation
9. Line test – Natural Gas or Propane
10. SRA Requirements
11. Final Plumbing
12. Final Mechanical
13. Final Electric
Southern Humboldt is dying….