Crystal Beach cottage rental crackdown continues
As the short-term cottage rental industry continues to boom thanks to cellphone apps such as Airbnb, the town has decided to forge ahead with a system designed to crack down on naughty neighbours.
However, the steep costs associated with tackling the problem head-on have put the brakes to some parts of the plan.
“I feel like we’ve got a problem, but the notion that we should spend $300,000 a year on some elaborate licensing system, I don’t think that’s palatable,” said Fort Erie Mayor Wayne Redekop at town hall on Monday as council debated a report which outlined the often tricky business of regulating and enforcing the rules around short-term rentals.
Fort Erie has 43 kilometres of pristine waterfront, which has made it a prime target for the growing cottage rental industry. Cellphone apps allow people to quickly list the properties for weekend renters. A quick search of Airbnb returned more than 100 cottages for rent in Fort Erie.
Airbnb is a billion-dollar company — and the town is looking to get a piece of that pie for themselves, but exactly how to do that remains elusive.
“Airbnb charges these people a fee, so why aren’t we?” asked Redekop.
As outlined in the report, creating a licensing system, and then enforcing the rules around that
system, is not small feat. A staff report estimated the cost of creating and enforcing a cottage rental system would require an investment of about $300,000 from the town, while only bringing in about $17,000 each year.
“I think Airbnb should be licensed by the municipality, and these places should be inspected by the fire department,” said Ward 1 Coun. George McDermott. “We have to find a way to shut these operations down when they become a nuisance to the local residents, but, we have to do this in a way that makes financial sense. We can’t drain the bank chasing this.”
All seven councillors said they’ve received numerous complaints
from residents about rowdy weekend parties at homes that are listed online as short-term
rentals. The staff report said six formal complaints were filed with the town.
“Some of these properties are only being rented out three or four times a year,” said Redekop, who noted there should be a distinction between those property owners who rent responsibility, and those who are operating a full-time rental business. “Others, are basically running a motel.”
Redekop advocated for the creation of a strict regulatory system involving demerit points for infractions, which would lead to fines, and ultimately, the licence being revoked if the property is causing too much trouble.
At the end of the debate, council voted to move forward with pursuing a licence and enforcement system for short-term rentals, but deferred the creation of the system until a later date so more information could be gathered.