Town mulls regulating short-term rentals

MADISON — Should short-term rentals, offered through sites such Airbnb or VRBO, be allowed in town? Or are they too much of a nuisance to permanent residents?

Those questions are at the center of an ongoing debate in Madison, where officials are exploring crafting an ordinance to regulate STRs.

Since at least 2021, a group of residents has been petitioning the town to ban property rentals of fewer than 30 days in residential districts. They contend STRs cause problems with noise and traffic and fundamentally change the character of their neighborhoods.

The group now has submitted a letter arguing that STRs are, in fact, already disallowed under Madison’s zoning regulations. The letter contends the regulations do not mention STRs as a permitted use in residence districts, except in the form of registered bed-and-breakfasts, which require zoning permits and face strict requirements.

Because of a clause in the regulations that states buildings are not to be used “except as permitted or required by these zoning regulations or by the subdivision regulations,” the letter argues, STRs in residence districts are prohibited.

“It is wholly illogical that the drafters of the Regulations would take such pains to regulate the use of property, including single-family dwellings, as Bed & Breakfasts in the Residence Districts, on the one hand, and yet permit the unfettered use of single-family dwellings as STRs on the other hand,” the letter says.

First Selectwoman Peggy Lyons said Friday she asked town counsel to prepare a statement responding to the letter. She confirmed the town has taken a different position on what Madison’s zoning regulations mean for STRs.

At a Planning & Zoning meeting in September 2021, then-Interim Town Planner John Guszkowski disagreed that the regulations’ lack of acknowledgement of STRs meant they were prohibited, according to meeting minutes.

He said it was unenforceable “from a zoning standpoint” to check leases, the minutes say, also indicating the commission decided STRs would be best dealt with through an ordinance passed by the Board of Selectmen.

The matter since has come up at several Board of Selectmen meetings, with residents speaking both for and against STRs.

In minutes from May and August meetings, some residents argued against bans or heavy regulations on STRs. They reported positive experiences with them and some said they relied on them for additional income.

At the August meeting, Town Planner Erin Mannix gave a presentation about STRs, meeting footage shows. According to the presentation, a data company working with the town identified 120 total listings of 98 unique STR properties in Madison; most appeared to be concentrated in coastal areas.

The listings had a median nightly rate of $344, Mannix said, and most were single-family dwellings without a host on site.

Arguments against STRs

In spring 2021, the house across the street from Laura Palumbo’s home was sold. It then became an STR, she said.

“We went from a peaceful property looking forward to summer all year, to having a constant flux of large groups of people, noise, garbage, a lot of comings and goings — there’s cleaning people, there’s repair people because it’s heavy use,” Palumbo said.

Though the home since has transitioned to being a long-term rental, she said, those issues prompted her to advocate for enforcement against STRs.

She wasn’t alone. Paul Wertheim said he became involved in those advocacy efforts after STRs started affecting his parents, who also live in town.

After a home next-door to his parents’ house became an STR, large groups of vacationers began packing into it during the summer months, according to Wertheim.

“I’ve never seen anything like it really. It’s so unusual,” he said. “This last summer there was a week after the 4th of July where there were literally like 10 kids on bikes riding all over.”

In 2021, more than 100 other residents signed a petition against STRs, according to copies of the petition provided by Palumbo.

We “want to live in place where we know our neighbors and where everyone has a stake in the community,” the petition said. “None of us want to live in a community with a constant flow of transient people. Not knowing week to week who will be living next door erodes the stability of our neighborhoods and our sense of security.”

Palumbo said she and other citizen activists have asked the town to require properties to be rented for a minimum of 30 days, with exemptions for lots larger than one acre and accessory dwellings where the owner lives on site.

During the August Board of Selectmen meeting, Linda Marino, an attorney and Madison resident, said “having a shortterm rental near your house is like living next to a hotel or motel” and erodes one’s sense of community.

Marino, an attorney, conducted the analysis of the zoning regulations that formed the basis of the letter the group sent the town, according to Palumbo.

Arguments for STRs

Not everyone opposes strong restrictions against STRs.

In letters to the Board of Selectmen submitted in December 2021 and April 2022, Kim Brunstad called STRs “an important part of Madison history” and said “the vast, vast majority of short-term rentals proceed without a problem due to careful screening.”

Brunstad successfully had rented out her carriage house through Airbnb, which she said has built-in safeguards and a rating system that helped her screen guests. She never received a complaint from neighbors, according to the December 2021 letter.

“There is a common misperception about who rents,” she wrote. “While on the Airbnb platform, I rented mainly to former Madison residents, grandparents visiting grandchildren, and grandchildren (along with their parents) visiting grandparents.”

Brunstad also told the board that the extra income from STRs helps ensure some property owners can afford to keep living in Madison. Her letters are attached to the minutes of the May 10, 2022, Board of Selectmen meeting.

Another resident, Mateusz Cieslak, wrote an email to the board in advance of the same meeting.

He worried imposing a 30-day minimum rental requirement would create a shortage of vacation accommodations, harm small businesses and cause difficulty for residents who depend on income from STRs to stay in town.

But Cieslak and Brunstad were not entirely opposed to regulations. Both suggested a noise ordinance could help address residents’ complaints about STRs.

They also shared concerns about corporate investors who buy up and rent out multiple properties. Brunstad noted such property owners would not necessarily have a stake in Madison.

“I propose that the town set up an approval and monitoring process whereby a Town official would supervise the issuance of permits to Management Companies to allow such companies to rent out investor-owned properties in Madison,” she wrote.

Next steps

Selectman Bruce Wilson said he has been working with other officials to craft an ordinance governing STRs.

“Right now we are looking at what other towns have done and trying to model what we think are the best practices from different communities and incorporate them into a document that will work for Madison,” he said.

The town hopes to have a document to present to the public within two months, according to Wilson, who said a community discussion would follow.

Currently, an outright ban is not part of the discussion, he said. The group is, however, considering “everything from registration to regulations on how many people can be there, how many days can be rented, inspection criteria, those types of things.”

A popular destination in the summer thanks to its beaches, Madison has a longstanding tradition of seasonal rentals, Wilson said.

“Really what we’re trying to do is be sensitive to the quality of life and neighborhood feel of Madison, and make sure we are honoring that tradition as well as recognizing the current state of how people prefer to vacation,” he said.

Lyons and her husband own a property that is rented out occasionally during the summer, she said. Because of that, she is working to help facilitate the process but “ultimately, when it comes down to a detailed discussion of the ordinance, I will be out of this conversation.”

She recused herself from any votes on the matter, according to minutes from the board’s May meeting.

Lyons told the New Haven Register she empathizes with the neighborhood concerns but said “our legacy in Madison is a vacation destination.”

“I think that we just need to balance all that and make sure people’s quality of life are protected,” she said.

The board is scheduled to discuss the matter at its meeting Tuesday.