11-27-2017 Council Packet - Laserfiche WebLink

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MINUTES OF THE ORONO CITY COUNCIL MEETING Monday, November 13, 2017 7:00 o'clock p.m. 16. #17-3984 — CITY OF ORONO TEXT AMENDMENT: RENTAL LICENSING, VACATION RENTAL PROHIBITION — Continued Carter indicated she does not require a contract since her rentals are short-term but that Vrbo might require a contract. Carter stated she also has a list of house rules that the guest has to sign off on and that she always meets her guests and talks to them about any particulars. Crosby asked what the average compensation is for the evening. Carter stated it depends on the season but that it ranges from $89 to $119 a night. Richard Rohrer, 1424 Baldur Park Road, stated the Council heard from some very responsible property owners but, unfortunately, they are not all like that. Rohrer stated there are some standards of conduct that they should expect from visitors to the Orono community, and that the property owners should bear the responsibility for that. Rohrer stated there has to be a way to hold people accountable when they create a property that creates a nuisance for the neighborhood whether that is done through ordinances or licensing. Mayor Walsh closed the public hearing at 7:33 p.m. Walsh commented there is no silver bullet to solve this issue and that a number of communities have tackled this situation in different ways. Seals stated she has been talking with a number of people in the community and that the Council spends a fair amount of time talking about how property owners have rights. Seals stated the Council also has to take into consideration those property owners that are not responsible and look at ways to address this issue that will cause minimum collateral damage. Seals noted what they heard from the group is that problems seem to arise when a few things happen, such as absentee landlords, unruly tenants, a large number of guests, people who park on the street, no penalty when things go wrong and the neighbors do not know who is there. Seals stated the Council's discussion tonight is to give some direction to Staff on how to draft an ordinance and that they could start by requiring a license, a house inspection, and then requiring certain rules. One rule could be if the City or police department receives a call that there are unruly guests, the property owner could lose their rental license after a certain number of calls. Seals noted she did own rental properties and that she would tell her renters that if she receives a phone call, they are done, which was written in the contract. Seals stated she has no problem with two strikes and you are out. Seals commented they have to have a starting point, which is the license and inspection. Seals stated she is not sure if the City's online permitting system can track who is staying there, but in her view there has to be some kind of middle ground. Seals stated in her view the majority of the people in the room do not have the kind of problems expressed tonight. Walsh stated he would like to look at Orono as a whole, and that in his view Orono is not a rental community. Walsh stated the Council hears over and over again that the residents do not want increased density and that they live here for the schools and the rural community. Walsh stated he does not see Orono as a transient community and that he does not want to help promote that. Walsh stated Orono is Page 6 of 17