July , 2022
RE: City Council June 21, 2022 Agenda Item 12.A
Dear City Councilmembers,
There was a recent article published in the New Times article published lune 23rd, and our neighborhood would like to address the concerns our community is having with the short term vacation rental (STVR) located on 119 Karen Way in Pismo Beach, and the growing worries many neighbors have in general regarding STVR properties. Many members of our community have wished to remain anonymous in filing complaints to the City Council, as the property owner at 119 Karen Way has been very vocal and verbally threatened to file lawsuits against neighbors if anyone complained about the STVR he has been hosting. But with this conversation now being at the forefront of the City Council, we, the community members living within Toucan Terrace and neighbors on Karen Way wish to share with the council the issues and problems with policing violations for STVR in general, and our experiences with the STVR in our neighborhood.
In mid 2020, we noticed our neighbor and his family move out of their home on 119 Karen Way. Over the next several months, neighbors noticed several different vehicles entering and exiting the home. What our neighbors did not realize is that the owner of 119 Karen Way had started a STVR without contacting any neighbors and without filing a STVR permit with the City of Pismo Beach. One member of our community made several phone calls and posted a complaint to the city's issues page, and wrote a formal letter emailed to the city's STVR email, which was never responded to. After multiple complaints, neighbors then received a letter in the mail that stated the STVR had been approved. Many members of our neighborhood were confused, as no one was notified by the owner, which is in direct violation of the Pismo Beach STVR Ordinance, section 17.09.040 Application and permit requirements:
"Each STR or homestay shall procure a short-term rental (STR) license from the City of Pismo Beach. The STR or homestay shall be registered by the property owner, not a property management company. The licensing process and other administrative provisions shall be established in Chapter 5.22. As part of the licensing process, property owners within three hundred feet of the subject licensed property shall be notified about the intent to operate said property as an STR or homestay and shall be provided contact information for the property owner and responsible party. "
On September 12, one neighbor posted an issue to the City of Pismo Beach's online website regarding the unpermitted STVR. On September 23rd, neighbors in Toucan Terrace received a notice from the city of Pismo Beach that a short term rental permit had been issued to 119 Karen Way with the contact being Jim Maples. One neighbor emailed a complaint to the City of Pismo Beach on September 27th, notifying the city that there had not been proper notification by the property owner of the intentions of running a STVR, in violation of 17.09,040. Following that notification, the residents on Karen Way have received two additional notices, each with a revised contact name and number for the STVR, with two additional letters sent September 29, 2021, and October 6th 2021, with neither of these new contacts being owners of the property. This goes against the language within 17.09.040, stating that, "The STR or homestay shall be registered by the property owner, not a property management company.:' When searching for Jon Loustaldt, the new contact for the property, it shows he resides in San Luis Obispo and not at the property address.
Next, the homeowners within the Toucan Terrace neighborhood would like to address section of the Pismo Beach STVR Ordinance, 17.09.060: Primary residence requirement:
STRs and homestays shall be permitted only at single-family properties that are the primary residence of the property owner. For purposes of short-term rental or homestay licensing, a property owner shall only have one primary residence at any time. Legally permitted accessory dwelling units occupied by the property owner may be deemed to be the property owner's primary residence. The property owner shall be required to provide proof of primary residence on a yearly basis. The property owner(s) shall be required to be individual owner(s) or trustee(s), and not a corporation, limited liability company, partnership, or other business or commercial entity. (Ord. 0-2018-007 § 1 (part), 2018)
As residents living on Karen Way, we have witnessed daily that on days when there is no one renting the property located at 119 Karen Way, that the residence remains unoccupied.
We also have kept records dating all the way back to September 2021 documenting when the property has had occupants, taken photos of the cars parked in front of the property, and witnessed the property sit empty and unoccupied, sometimes for many weeks and months at a time. One question we pose to the City Council: How exactly does the City of Pismo Beach police/monitor/track when the owner is residing in the STVR property? As outlined in the Pismo Beach STVR ordinance, "Primary residence" shall mean the dwelling owned and occupied as the property owner's principal place of residence, where the owner lives more than fifty percent of the year (26 C.F.R. § 1.121-1(b) (2)), defined herein as one hundred eighty-three days or more per year. For purposes of short-term rental or homestay licensing, a person can only have one primary
residence at any time. If the owner is supposed to be living at the property at 119 Karen Way, then the owner is in violation of this section of the ordinance having not resided at the residence for nearly a full year (September 2021-July 2022). The current owner's wife has stayed at the property for a total of 9 days since September 2021. Are residents now supposed to be policing when and if a person is residing within a STVR? This doesn't seem like an appropriate measure to place the burden of reviewing/documenting usage and monitoring the number of days a homeowner is supposed to be living within a property on homeowners and neighbors. This afternoon, one neighbor reviewed listings on AirBnB and found over 188 stays listed in Pismo Beach. This neighbor spent over 4 hours reviewing all the permitted Pismo Beach STVR and marked off over 50 homes listed as STVR that are unpermitted. It is very clear to see that the City does not have the capacity to manage/document/restrict/fine the many, many STVR properties that continue to pop up on a daily basis.
Next, I would like to mention the Short Term Rental License Application, which outlines Maximum Occupancy: "Maximum overnight occupancy of an STR or homestay shall be limited to two people per bedroom, plus two additonal people. For example, a two -bedroom STR may have up to six occupants overnight. This calculation shall be inclusive of children.
10. Visitors - The number of visitors to an STR or homestay shall not exceed a number equal to the allowable occupancy of the STR or homestay at any time. Visitors are not allowed in the STR or homestay between 11:00 p.m. and 7:00 a.m. and shall not stay overnight on the premises." On many occasions, we have witnessed and documented (on attached pages included in this letter) more than the allocation of cars for a 3-bedroom home. September 1-3, when we first started documenting the STVR, there were 4 cars, 3 parked in the driveway and one parked in the Toucan Terrace resident's guest parking area, a violation of the ordinance. On September 25th, there was a U-haul parked in the resident's guest parking area and on November 25th, there were 4 cars and a camper van parked in the driveway, both of which violate the Toucan Terrace HOA codes for not allowing campers and RVs to be parked in driveway, with an additional motorcyclist arriving late in the evening and staying overnight.. There were over 15 people staying on the property, more than what the permitted occupancy is (8 persons per 3 bedroom). On Feb 13th, there were 6 cars documented staying at the property, 3 in the driveway and 3 taking up Toucan Terrace residential on street parking. There have also been many occasions where visitors have parked on the street, which is a violation of Toucan Terrace HOA bylaws, which does not permit street parking within the neighborhood.
It is very clear to the homeowners and residents of Toucan Terrace, and I imagine many other residents and homeowners living in Pismo Beach, that this is a major problem that the city does not seem prepared or has the capacity to manage/police STVR properties
within the city of Pismo Beach. It is extremely concerning to see homes that could be utilized for our current workforce and families being taken off the rental market and becoming a hotel property within so many neighborhoods and communities, just like Toucan Terrace.
In closing, we appreciate city council members taking a firm stance and putting a moratorium on vacation rentals. We are also hoping the city will take the time to actually review the MANY unpermitted vacation rentals currently listed on VRBO and AirBnB and find a way to place a cease operations on these properties. We also ask that the city review the current ordinance and allocate certain areas of the city as areas for vacation rentals (downtown proper), and to keep community neighborhoods free from STVR. As we have witnessed, STVR have continued to erode the city of residential housing units for community members. Let's just state the facts, STVR change the feel of communities and disrupt the daily lives of those owners who have made the investment to live at their homes in these communities. Just look at the countless hours residents have put in to document, report, take photos and write letters to show the disruptions now happening on a weekly basis. This should not be a residents job to document and report when an owner is not living in a property that they should be dwelling in as part of their 180 days as a STVR property owner. Let's be straight,the majority of the owners of these STVR properties do not live/dwell or even stop by their STVR property any more. We, as neighbors on Karen Way and residing in Toucan Terrace, do believe the STVR located at 119 Karen Way should be revoked as the owner has not lived at the property for 180 days out of the year.
The city staff need further guidance and instruction on how they are approving permits and also how they are handling complaints and violations, as well as how they are policing so called "owner occupied" STVR dwellings. This comprehensive administrative review should include a review of the permits already granted. Our neighborhood further asks the Council to re-examine the City's STR regulations as presently codified and determine whether they are effectively serving the interests of Pismo Beach residents and property owners.
I have included the documented photos and listed dates the STVR has been unoccupied as proof that the current owners does not live at the property.
We implore the city council and staff to take the requested action on this property.
Otherwise, what is the purpose of having rules and regulations in the City Code if property owners do not follow them? What about the rights of the other residents on this street? Why are residents now policing/documenting violations and live in fear of being prosecuted/sued? We all bought our homes with the understanding that we are in an R-1
and R-2 zone which means residential, not a commercial or a hotel zone. If you read the original general plan for the Toucan Terrace development, the development was for affordable housing for single family residential use. It is very clear to our community that the city is more concerned with collecting TOT tax dollars and building funding to create a Pismo Beach that solely serves vacationers not the community. Pismo Beach will continue to grow in STVC properties unless the city council and staff take firm action in keeping residents within the community. Adding more and more STVR will create transient hotel zones, and will eventually run all of its long term residents out of town.. We recommend that the City Council and staff seriously look at the regulations of the City of Monterey and also South Lake Tahoe where they do not allow STRs in residential areas. There is plenty of room in Pismo Beach for visitors and transient occupants to stay at hotels and STVR within the downtown core.. We wish to keep our neighborhoods what they are, for neighbors, not tourists and transient housing. We would appreciate your response in writing.
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Log of Transient Occupants @ 119 Karen Way
Check out time 10am, check in 2pm
Upon guests leaving, there is currently no resident living at the property. Based on walking by at night, early morning drive-bys on the way to work, and surveillance e cameras from neighbors, the home sits empty with no resident physically at the property.
It is the understanding of the Pismo Beach STVR code enforcement 5.22.100C which states that the property owner must be living at the residence at least 180 days/year. Our question is, how is this enforced and how is the city determining when the property owner is living at the property?
The 119 Karen Way property was originally listed on AirBnB as a 4 bedroom but changed to a 3 bedroom as one-bedroom structure outside is an unpermitted unit. The home is advertised with use to Toucan Terrace HOA Tennis Courts, Clubhouse and walking trails as well as advertises a putting green in the backyard.
There have also been multiple occasions where there are extra vehicles taking up multiple resident’s parking areas. See below all documented visitors and the amount of cars parking in residential spaces. There has even been an RV parked in the driveway which based on our CCR’s and HOA bylaws are not permitted.
Sept 1st-2nd, 2021: Guests arrive--t 2 nights, 4 cars, 5 guests September 4th-5th, 2021: 1 car 5 guests
September 10th-11th: 4 cars 8 guests
September 12th-13th: 2 cars, 6 guests
September 14-16th: 3 cars, 9 guests, 2 dogs
September 17-18th: 2 cars, 8 guests
September 19-21st: 3 cars, 5 guests
September 25-: unknown how many guests, 2 cars and u-haul parked in visitor parking September 26: 6 guests, 3 cars
Sept. 12, 2021 Sept. 13, 2021
Sept. 17, 2021 Sept. 18, 2021
Sept. 25, 2021: U-Haul parked in resident’s visitor parking
Sept. 26, 2021--6 guests
September 26th: Neighbor received notice of STVR from City of Pismo Beach Property sat vacant: September 3, 6, 7, 8, 9, 21, 22, 23, 27, 28, 29 30th October 1st: Neighbor received revised notice of STVR from City of Pismo beach with new owner contact.
October 3rd: 3 cars
October 8: 3 cars 7 people
October 9: another group of 6 checks in
October 10: a different group of 5 checks in
October 11: a different group of 6 checks in
October 12: Notification from the City of Pismo Beach regarding new contact for STVR October 14: 2 Cars
October 23: 2 Cars
Property sat vacant: October 1, 2, 4, 5, 6, 7, 13, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28 November 21: 2 cars
November 24: 4 cars 1 illegally parked on street in front of neighbors house. CCR and HOA bylaws prohibit cars parked on street.
November 25: 3 SUVs and a camper van parked in driveway--4 total cars. At least 14 people occupy property.
November 26: another car added for a total of 4 cars and a camper van. Motorcyclist also added later at night, at least 15 people.
Property sat vacant: November 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 22, 23, 27, 28, 29
December 19-31: 3 different groups rented location over holidays.
Property sat vacant: December 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19
January 2022: Property was vacant throughout January
Feb 13th: 6 cars total: 3 in driveway and 3 taking up resident parking areas.
June 26th: 1 Guest not parked in driveway, parked in resident parking area.
ADDITIONAL NOTES:
After meeting with many neighbors within Toucan Terrace, we have also learned reports of the following activities that were witnessed by residents who live near 119 Karen Way:
-In early May, there were several people in front of the house and were discussing drug dealing.
The neighbor who saw this believed there were drugs being distributed out of the home. -On 4th of July, another neighbor witnessed fireworks being shot off in the backyard of 119 Karen Way. One firework landed in the backyard of a resident who lives two doors down. -There have been multiple reports to the city from another neighbor who has golf balls being hit onto his property. The owners of 119 Karen way offers to replace real golf balls with fake ones, and the neighbor continues to have balls hit into his backyard, which is a nuisance. -Additionally, on a quick review of the Air BnB website, there are 150+ Airbnb properties listed for rent within Pismo Beach, a much larger number than the 30 or so listed on the Pismo beach website. Screenshot of AirBnB: