For the past three years, the Niagara Falls Zoning Board of Appeals meeting agendas have been dominated by dozens of requests from residential property owners seeking to rent rooms in their homes.
Now, all five members of the City Council are co-sponsoring a 90-day moratorium on allowing the creation of short-term rentals such as Airbnb in the city. The Council is expected to pass it Wednesday.
Mayor Robert M. Restaino said the board has approved 144 short-term rentals. Of those, about half have obtained building permits and completed their plans.
"They're not entirely a bad thing," Council Chairman Christopher P. Voccio said Thursday. He said rentals often result in property improvements, and the owners are supposed to pay the city's hotel and motel bed tax.
"Like anything, there are some bad actors," Voccio said. He said some of the rentals have "questionable health and safety issues."
"The handwriting's been on the wall," said Robert Pascoal, former president of the Landlords Association of Niagara, who holds permits for four short-term rentals.
"For some time, they're been complaining about neighborhoods being infected by these, a 'not in my backyard' thing," Pascoal said.
During the moratorium, a committee of city officials and landlords will work on new regulations, Voccio said.
"We ought to take a closer look at the short-term rental industry, make sure we're doing it correctly," Restaino said.
He said issues the committee should address include fees for the city, zoning regulations and health and safety requirements.
"It has proliferated quite a bit," Restaino said. "It's everywhere, sort of in a haphazard way. We're not sure that's the best approach."
"I see it as a salvation for the city's housing stock," Pascoal said.
He said short-term renters seem less likely than long-term tenants to wreck property.
"It helps offset the garbage fees and the taxes," Pascoal said. "It's individuals taking advantage of the fact that we live in a high-tourism area."
At present, owners of property in residential zones who want to rent a room through Airbnb or some other service must obtain a special permit from the Zoning Board.
Tuesday's meeting was typical of recent months, with 14 short-term rental requests on the board's agenda. Some came from individual homeowners, while others came from property management companies that own numerous buildings in the city.
Many were downtown or near Niagara Falls State Park, with locations such as lower Buffalo Avenue, Quay Street and Park Place. But others were scattered around the city in such locations as 17th Street and Ferry, Welch, Pine, James, Livingston and Ontario avenues.
"term" - Google News
January 25, 2020 at 10:00PM
https://ift.tt/2TVxu6j
Niagara Falls plans moratorium on Airbnb and other short-term rentals - Buffalo News
"term" - Google News
https://ift.tt/35lXs52
Shoes Man Tutorial
Pos News Update
Meme Update
Korean Entertainment News
Japan News Update
Bagikan Berita Ini
0 Response to "Niagara Falls plans moratorium on Airbnb and other short-term rentals - Buffalo News"
Post a Comment