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MINUTES OF THE <br /> ORONO CITY COUNCIL MEETING <br /> Monday,November 13,2017 <br /> 7:00 o'clock p.m. <br /> 16. #17-3984—CITY OF ORONO TEXT AMENDMENT: RENTAL LICENSING, <br /> VACATION RENTAL PROHIBITION—Continued <br /> they have not noticed any problems. Dankey stated she would hate to tell people they cannot do this <br /> because it is a very popular thing. Dankey stated in her view Orono is a destination area,and that when <br /> she got married,she wanted people to stay close by but there were no places to stay. As a result,she got <br /> married downtown instead and not in Orono. <br /> Dankey noted she has had problems with neighbors in the past that are not weekend renters. Dankey <br /> commented short-term rentals are in and out of the property,but if someone is an absentee owner,they <br /> need to have a manager that is within five minutes of the property so they can deal with the issue right <br /> away. In addition,the landlords need a management plan. Dankey stated in her view that is how you can <br /> get rid of 90 percent of the problems. <br /> Seals stated in her view the 30 days is kind of arbitrary,and while the Council is saying they are not <br /> shutting short-term rentals down,they in essence will by requiring a minimum 30-day stay. <br /> Printup stated the City Council should look at what Orono wants,and that Orono is not a destination spot, <br /> not a transient community,but people come here to live,not to vacation. Orono does not have resorts in <br /> different areas on the lake. T'he City also has rules that require a principal structure in order to have a <br /> dock. Printup stated he wants to protect the residents,let them live their normal,everyday lives,and not <br /> have strangers come and go. <br /> Crosby stated Orono stands for great schools and quality lake water,and that he does not think Orono <br /> needs to have a lot of people coming in and renting and disserving the people who live here. Crosby <br /> noted the City Council works for the taxpayers and that it is unfortunate a small group has ruined it,but <br /> that is what has happened,and the Council needs to be responsible to the people who live here. <br /> Dankey commentedl5 percent of Orono consists of rental properties. <br /> Crosby noted they are not short-term rentals. <br /> Seals asked what problem the City Council is trying to solve. Seals stated the only true problem that <br /> needs to be solved is how to deal with problem renters and a property owner that is not a good neighbor. <br /> Seals stated if those things were already in place,the City Council would not be aware of these issues, <br /> and that the City does not have to go that far to solve the problem. Seals stated the problem is not <br /> becoming a transient community or a surging use of Vrbos. <br /> Seals stated the City currently does not have a mechanism in place to know who is renting and that the <br /> only recourse is to send them nasty citations. Seals stated she is trying to identify the problem,which is <br /> when things go bad,the City has no way to fix it. Seals stated if somebody is going to have a rental,they <br /> need to have certain mechanisms in place,and if the City receives X number of phone calls about the <br /> property,they are going to lose their rental license. Seals stated in her view that would prompt the <br /> property owner to address the issues. <br /> Dankey stated she also has lived next to a long-term rental and it was a problem. Dankey stated <br /> long-term renters are harder to get rid of. <br /> Page 8 of 17 <br />