From:
Sent: Monday, June 20, 2022 10:49 AM
To: [email protected]; Sheila Blake ; Mary Ann Reiss ; Marcia Guthrie ; Scott Newton
Cc: City Council
Subject: Comments re Item #12.A (21 June Council meeting)
External Email
Dear Mayor and Councilmembers,
I wish to submit the attached comments pertaining to Item #12.A, Short Term Rental Regulations and Enforcement, which is on the City Council Agenda for the 21 June 2022 meeting.
Thank you for your consideration.
Respectfully,
Pismo Beach, CA
1 20 June 2022
City of Pismo Beach
City Council
760 Mattie Road
Pismo Beach, CA 93449
Ref: Agenda Item #12.A, Short Term Rental Regulations and Enforcement (21 June meeting)
Dear Councilmembers:
I urge you to adopt a moratorium on further Short Term Rental (STR) permitting until clear deficiencies in the city’s regulation and enforcement process can be remedied.
My neighborhood has become acutely aware of these problems because of a single family home STR operating on our street at 125 N Silver Shoals Drive, the history of which provides a case study of what’s wrong with the city’s existing approach to STR regulation. The current owner, who does not reside at the property, illegally offered and rented this home for STR use multiple times without a city permit starting in November 2021. Silver Shoals neighbors notified the city of 6 separate violations along with various nuisances caused by transient occupants during the period from November through January. We were told by city staff members in the Community Development Department that the matter would be investigated and necessary enforcement action taken. Staff initially indicated to us that this owner’s gross violations of city regulations would be taken into account and possibly preclude the issuance of a STR permit.
Most importantly, we were reassured by the city’s requirement that an owner seeking a STR permit must demonstrate primary residency as defined in City Code Section 17.113.020C. We knew the owner of this property did not meet that requirement. We asked city staff to notify us if and when the owner applied for a permit, so we could offer documented evidence to show that the home was not serving as their principal residence. We were told we would be.
Given this background, we were then astonished to receive a routine “yellow card” notification from the city last month that a STR permit for the property had been granted. No advance notification of the STR application was provided and there was no opportunity for public input or comment. When Ed Henry and I formally requested an appeal of the permit decision to the Planning Commission (based on City Code 17.121.240), our request was denied on obscure legal grounds.
This frustrating experience leads me to offer the following recommendations, which I hope you will seriously consider as you review the city’s STR regulation process:
2 Quickly investigate and penalize unpermitted STRs. Although our understanding is that the city eventually fined the owner of 125 N Silver Shoals, violations continued long after the neighbors had provided solid evidence of illegal STR activity to city staff.
Stop granting STR permits to property owners with a record of prior violations. The city essentially rewarded the owner of 125 N Silver Shoals with a permit despite their documented history of illegal STRs preceding the application. Such action undermines respect for the city’s laws and will only lead to more frequent and flagrant STR violations in our community.
Require solid proof of “primary residency” for any STR permit. The owner of 125 N Silver Shoals actually lives in Contra Costa County but simply submitted a recently changed driver’s license and a few other easily modified records showing the Pismo Beach address, and that was apparently good enough for the city. The process of primary residency verification needs to be made much more stringent to ensure that STR applicants cannot so easily game the system. Testimony from neighbors who are aware of the actual occupancy status of nearby homes, or can offer evidence indicating an applicant’s true residence, should be considered when available.
Revoke the STR permit of any owner who submitted a fraudulent application. An owner who submitted false information on their application, or was knowingly not in compliance with the city’s STR regulations at the time of the application, should have their permit revoked. As an obvious example, the permit issued for 125 N Silver Shoals Drive should be immediately revoked because the owner misled the city by falsely declaring that home as their principal residence.
Provide advance notification of nearby STR permit applications and an opportunity for public comment. All residents of the block on which an applicant’s property is located should be provided with advance notice of the pending application. If requested by one or more such residents, an open public hearing should be scheduled to allow the neighborhood to provide input that may be pertinent to the city’s permitting decision.
Improve the city’s ability to uncover, receive and assess information regarding STR violations and associated nuisances. The city should create (or contract for) a more robust capability to automatically monitor popular vacation rental websites (e.g. AirBnB, VRBO) for listings that advertise STRs at unpermitted Pismo Beach addresses. The STR complaint hotline needs to be actively monitored and all valid tips should prompt timely acknowledgements and appropriate follow-ups. And clearly, the hotline number needs to be listed correctly on the city website, which it wasn’t until very recently!
3 Pismo Beach is a highly attractive beach community and a great place to live. Unregulated and improperly permitted STRs have the potential to ruin the character and livability of residential neighborhoods and erode permanent housing stock throughout the city. Failure to vigorously enforce existing city codes and regulations pertaining to STRs only encourages more serious violations. Issuing permits to known violators rewards th ose who flout the law. Ignoring relevant information from residents about what’s really going on with improper STR activity in their neighborhood leads to poorly informed permitting decisions and suboptimal enforcement.
I strongly encourage you to adopt the recommended moratorium and thoroughly review the STR policies of Pismo Beach. Please implement the necessary changes to STR regulations and administrative practices to ensure that they will effectively serve the interests of local residents and property owners.
Thank you for your consideration.
Pismo Beach, CA 93449