As the Summit County Council considers adopting a moratorium on nightly rental licenses to address what they say is a growing concern, the Park City Board of Realtors has criticized the move as a “knee-jerk reaction” to a recent study.
The Board of Realtors submitted a letter to the County Council on May 24, one day before elected officials seemed poised to vote on the ordinance. Instead, the discussion was tabled, in part because of the Board of Realtors’ opposition, until a public hearing could be held this week.
Park City Board of Realtors President Rene Wood said in an interview the organization hopes to present its own findings that show short-term rentals have not been a problem to the Council as well as other ways resort communities have worked with homeowners who want to use their personal property as vacation rentals to mitigate the impacts on residential neighborhoods. She anticipates a large turnout of people from the real estate industry at Wednesday’s meeting.
“The Board feels as though a moratorium is not the correct response to the issues that were in the county staff report on May 11, 2022, concerning short-term rentals,” a press release stated. “The moratorium is a knee-jerk reaction to issues within the staff report. There is no sufficient data that has been produced at this time to warrant the termination of licensing for the remainder of 2022.”
Under the draft ordinance, no nightly rental licenses would be given during the six months to give the county time to examine the issue. County staffers didn’t expect many people to be impacted by a moratorium because licenses for this year had to be renewed by Jan. 15 or a late fee would be issued.
The idea for a moratorium came after a staff report from early May referenced findings from the Kem C. Gardner Policy Institute of the University of Utah that determined the state has experienced a 38.4% increase in short-term rentals. Summit County tops the list with the highest percentage of nightly units in the state with around 22% of housing in the county classified as short-term rentals.
With the rise in short-term accommodations, the County Council began considering new ways to regulate rental units, most of which are unlicensed. Staffers from the Summit County Attorney’s Office indicated elected officials have plenty of freedom to craft an ordinance that addresses health, safety and other community concerns, but they aren’t allowed to prohibit rental units from being listed online.
Wood said the Board of Realtors has also been collecting data from communities similar to Park City that support short-term rentals. The organization is also seeking information, like police reports or call records, from the County Council that document concerns elected officials claim residents have voiced about the units.
In the press release, the Board of Realtors stated it prides itself on being “the experts on issues related to real estate in the Wasatch Back” and it provides valuable resources and experience to the community. The organization said it’s “discouraged” the County Council didn’t provide an opportunity for the groups to work together to find solutions.
“We urge them, even more, to not act abruptly as the voices get loud. Let their resolve be fueled by reason and data,” the press release said. “The concern for public safety seems to be on all of our priority lists and we believe that stopping permitting will just push more homeowners to rent their properties without regulation or permits and in turn make our community less safe.”
The Board of Realtors isn’t opposed to regulating short-term rental units but wants elected officials to enforce the rules that are already in place to improve the system for everyone.
During the May 11 meeting, Lynda Viti, a deputy county attorney, said there is virtually nothing in the current Summit County code to regulate nightly rentals. There’s no real regulation for health issues like unsanitary pools and bed bugs or safety concerns like fire inspections, which are not mandated by listing companies. The only requirement for a short-term rental is that the owner must obtain a license, which includes their contact details and sales-tax collection information.
Wood said the organization is also willing to participate in collaborative efforts with the County Council for further discussion and deliberation moving forward, including designating a representative to provide the organization’s input. The Board of Realtors’ main focus is preserving personal property and sees the proposed moratorium as infringing on those rights.
“The vacation rental program accommodates the housing necessary for visitors that support our local business, community services, employment and economic health. The [Board of Realtors] supports a reasonable but firm approach to protect the quiet enjoyment in residential neighborhoods by both full-time residents as well as our visitors,” the press release said.
County Councilor Doug Clyde argued during the May 25 meeting it is the responsibility of the government to balance property rights with public rights. He said elected officials only need to demonstrate a reasonable argument that they’re acting in the best interest of the people, which overrides counterarguments of property rights and income lost from not being able to rent. He later indicated he didn’t want to vote on the ordinance until a public hearing was held to allow both sides to discuss the issue.
The County Council is scheduled to hold a public hearing on the merits of a moratorium on nightly rental licenses at 6 p.m. on Wednesday, June 1 at the Ledges Event Center in Coalville.