INDIAN RIVER COUNTY — Stiffer fines for violations of short-term vacation rental regulations led the list of recommendations delivered to county commissioners by a divided Short Term Vacation Rental Advisory Committee last week.
Despite the increased fines and other recommendations, short-term rental opponents were not happy with the committee’s outcome.
George Lamborn, president of the South Beach Property Owners Association, issued a statement addressed to the commission alleging, “The Chair of your Committee was incapable of rendering impartial rulings due to his personal conflict of interest as a vacation rental operator, and as a long-time advocate of the industry.”
The committee recommended a $50-per-vehicle fine for a first violation and $100-per-vehicle fine for each repeat violation of regulations restricting parking at vacation rental properties. For commercial events at residences, it was thought the fines “should be substantially higher so they could not be absorbed as a ‘cost of doing business.’ ” The committee recommends a fine of $1,000 for the first violation and $5,000 for repeat violations of the restriction on “commercial events at residences.”
Vacation rental businesses are supposed to have a county business license and the committee recommended setting a 30-business-day deadline, after notice, for an unlicensed rental unit to obtain a county license, with a $100-a-day fine after the deadline if the business continues to operate.
Staff said it was important to note that all county regulations applicable to single-family residences, including noise, nuisance and environmental regulations, also apply to vacation rentals.
The hot-button topic sparked emotional remarks from both sides at the April 12 commission meeting, pitting neighboring residents against short-term rental property owners, many of them members of the now “sun-setted” rental committee, which met six times between October 2015 and March 2016, and was meant to include people on both sides of the issue.
Committee members said they had struggled to reach a consensus; several told commissioners the process had been a contentious train wreck. More than once during public comment, commission Chairman Bob Solari slammed down the gavel, warning speakers to refrain from personal attacks.
In 2012, the BCC adopted regulations clarifying the definition of a short-term rental, as distinguished from a hotel or motel. At that time, the board directed staff to track site-specific complaints and coordinate with the state to ensure local vacation rentals comply with state licensing requirements and local tax obligations. Over the next four years, Code Enforcement received complaints about 18 suspected unlicensed units.
Last summer, the Commission adopted prohibitions on commercial events such as weddings at short-term rental properties and instituted special parking regulations after hearing complaints about large events generating noise and parking problems in South Beach neighborhoods and elsewhere.
Rental committee recommendations delivered on April 12 are intended to stiffen regulation of events and parking at short-term rental properties, but Lamborn alleged “the committee made recommendations in the absence of essential information,” and claimed the public did not get “what we were promised from this committee.”
Community Development Director Stan Boling said staff will now begin the process leading to review and adoption of the recommended ordinance.