Short-term rental rules approved by City Council

CRISFIELD - If you rent your home, apartment or condominium to guests for 15 consecutive days or less the city has a new set of regulations to follow.

With little discussion following a public hearing the City Council amended the zoning code to regulate short term rentals which will be permitted in Tourist-Maritime, Central Business and all Residential districts upon submitting required paperwork, undergoing an inspection, and payment of a fee.

That annual fee depends on whether the unit will be owner-occupied (Type 1 for $100) or not (Type 2 for $200) and the new law has no impact on hotels, motels or bed and breakfasts. It also eliminates boarding and lodging houses and tourist homes from the zoning code which in some cases required a special exception from the Board of Zoning Appeals.

The application requires information about the property, parking, contact information on who responds to complaints, and attestation that the place is maintained, has necessary emergency equipment to include smoke detectors, and is insured to include personal injury liability of guests.

For the tenant a notification is to be posted "in a conspicuous location" of parking, quiet hours, contact information and city emergency numbers, trash disposal requirements and "Notice that failure to conform to the occupancy and parking requirements is a violation" of the city code.

When the application is submitted and deemed complete the property will be inspected - a requirement the city has had in place for long-term rentals since 2009.

Those who operate without a short-term rental permit would be subject to a municipal infraction with a $200 fine, raised to $500 for repeat violations within 12 months of adjudication of the initial violation.

Permits for short term rentals will be denied if a homeowners' association or deed restriction prohibits it, which is something at least one condominium association is considering.

Property owners of the Tangier Sound Condominium in particular spoke at the hearing and the insurance challenges they're facing not to mention new regulations on structural integrity inspections that were mandated last year in response to the collapse in 2021 of a 12-story condominium in Florida.

Randy Bergen said the liability insurer in particular prefers no rentals less than six months and is "dead set against" short-term rentals. He added that "if they get so much as a whiff of a short-term Airbnb-style rental they'll drop us like a hot potato" or double or triple the premium.

He said he was told the monthly condo fees are now around $650 per month although he did not know if that was an Eastern Shore average.

"We're probably going to do everything we can to ban Airbnbs because of the insurance situation," Mr. Bergan said, predicting other condominium managers may come to the same conclusion. "The Mayor and Council need so know that's probably where it's going to go for everybody in town when it comes to a condo."

A letter read into the record from Noah Bradshaw, an Airbnb "Super Host" for seven years included several questions the council did not address, and picked at some of the application's requirements to include submitting of house rules, presentation of scale drawings of the premises, and requiring notarized signatures.

A former building inspector for the city, Mr. Bradshaw wrote that even a building permit does not require a notary, and a building permit does not require an insurance certificate.

As someone who has already booked rentals for the summer Mr. Bradshaw expressed concern about the timeframe to apply, be inspected and whether he will be permitted in time to not impact those vacationers, concluding, "Here's hoping you will not add more burdensome regulations to this small industry in our town."

The council's vote last Wednesday was 4-0 with Vice President Ivan Lankford online and Councilwoman Ruthie Todd absent. Councilman Casey Goldsborough, who motioned for the ordinance amendment, did not attend the public hearing.

City Solicitor Andrew Illuminati said the planning commission held several meetings last year to discuss the adoption of standards where the public was able to speak up and ask questions. The measure came about because of problems neighbors had and reported to City Hall about short-term rental tenants, particularly at Tangier Sound Condominiums.

In the ordinance if a short-term rental application is denied or revoked appeals are heard by the Board of Zoning Appeals. If not appealed and a permit is revoked the property owner must wait at least six months before reapplying.

Mr. Illuminati said if the law as written has flaws the City Council can correct them with amendments at a later date.