Lake rentals are upsetting residents

Some homeowners want zoning rules changed

WINCHESTER — A home often is a family’s biggest investment, so changes in a neighborhood can be worrisome.

According to Winchester’s Planning & Zoning Commission, some property owners on Highland Lake think the growing number of homes being rented to summer visitors is a problem. Blocked streets, trespassing and loud parties are the result, they say.

In response to the concerns, a subcommittee of the commission, called the “Short-term Rental Review Committee,” has studied whether new regulations should be adopted, which would require property owners to apply for a special permit before they rent out their homes.

Commission member Jerry Martinez, a member of the subcommittee, said vacation rentals are an issue facing nearly every town in Connecticut.

“We want to get ahead of it for northwest Connecticut,” he said.

“If a home is rented every weekend, and new people come in each time, when does a short-term rental turn into a hotel?” Martinez asked hypothetically, adding that traditional bed-and-breakfast rentals already are regulated by the city, but short-term rentals on Highland Lake are not.

A first draft of a document on rental regulation was submitted Monday night to the full commission. It has not yet been released to the public, said Town Planner Steve Sadlowski.

At a subcommittee meeting in July, a number of homeowners who use their property for short-term rentals told the members a new regulation is unnecessary. Five out of the six property owners who spoke at the meeting were against the plan, according to the minutes.

John Herman of 800 E. Wakefield Blvd. on Highland Lake said he hasn’t had a problem renting his cottage to summer visitors. He noted that it’s long been an expectation that property owners on the lake could rent out their homes.

“To change this practice would be a monumental change,” he said, according to the minutes.

Joanne and Matt Smith of 665 East Wakefield Blvd. submitted a letter to the subcommittee in support of renting property on the lake. The couple rents out four properties, they said, and believe “there is no need for additional policies or ordinances,” according to the minutes.

The costs to rent a vacation get-away on Highland Lake, based on information from the website Vacation Rentals By Owner, vary from a low of $86 per night for an apartment in a house, to $400 a night for a five-bedroom, historic home built in 1890.

The lone property owner at the July meeting who supported a short-term rental regulation was Keith Becker, of 523 East Wakefield Blvd. He told the subcommittee that he lives next to a rental property that has new tenants nearly every night. Becker said the renters parked on his property. “I had different folks walking by my home,” he said, according to the minutes.

“Owners have had good experiences, neighbors have not,” said Martinez. “It’s very close quarters there. Some lots are only 50 feet wide.”

One of the biggest problems arises, Martinez said, from owners who aren’t on site to act as hosts.

“They are churning people through the weekend. Having property that is unhosted is when the problems happen,” he said.

It could take months before a decision is made on whether to adopt the short-term rental regulations, Sadlowski said.

“We are looking into regulations,” from other municipalities, he said. “We certainly want to address the concerns folks had.”

File photo The Winchester Planning and Zoning Commission is considering regulatory changes which would affect homeowners who rent their Highland Lake property to vacationers.

Leslie Hutchison / Hearst Connecticut Media file photo Highland Lake in Winchester covers 445 acres. There are about 300 houses built along the shore, some of which are used as summer rental properties. A proposed planning regulation could change how the owners conduct rental activities.

File photo New zoning regulations may affect Highland Lake properties rented to summer visitors.