Vacation rentals on the South Lake Tahoe City Council agenda

The South Lake Tahoe City Council will be discussing changes to the Vacation Home Rental Ordinance on Tuesday that, if passed, will bring about changes to the permit review process, add criteria to be considered when a new permit is issued, and the addition of an annual renewal review.

There have been several packed council and community meetings on the topic of the proposed updated to the Vacation Home Rental (VHR) ordinance, and Tuesday's meeting should be no different.

After the June 16 City Council meeting on VHRs, Councilmembers Austin Sass and Wendy David were appointed to a subcommittee to look into the suggested changes by speaking with stakeholders and other community members, and to refine and evaluate all proposed to changes.

Their suggestions will be voted on Tuesday. Passage of the changed ordinance will require the hiring of a Zoning Administrator to handle all aspects of the approval process.

The Zoning Administrator will make a determination whether or not the issuance of the permit shall be detrimental to the public health, safety and welfare of the residents within the neighborhood or injurious to the community within the vicinity and district in which the use is located and/or proposed.

The changes include:
1) All residents within 300 feet of the proposed VHR will get notified that an application has been requested. Those residents will have the opportunity to file an appeal and speak up at a public hearing. If no objections are received there will be no public hearing.
2) Each property will be inspected to ensure it complies with applicable codes.
3) Appeals will decisions of the Zoning Administrator will go to the Planning Commission. Appeals from the commission's decision will go to City Council.
4) Homes must meet safety codes concerning smoke and carbon dioxide detectors and fire extinguishers.
5) Parking spaces must meet size of home and number of renters anticipated.
6) A contact person must be available 24 hrs a day for the property.
7) Keep good Transient Occupancy Tax records.
8) All advertising must contain truthful and accurate information about the home's features, occupancy and regulations of the property.
9) All homes will be inspected at least once. For new permits, it will be at time of issuance, for current VHRs renewing their permit, at time of renewal.
10) If a home has two violations of the ordinance in one year the renewal can be denied.

The proposed changes come with a price tag. Since a public hearing process for issuance of the VHR permits will require a substantial amount of staff time, the cost of the hearing will be passed onto the applicant.

The South Lake Tahoe Board of Realtors has asked for all of their members to use the comment field on the City Council agenda to voice their opinions about the proposed changes.

If this meeting, which starts July 21 at 9 a.m. at the Council Chambers at the airport, goes as the past one have when VHRs are discussed, a crowd can be expected.