HomeMy WebLinkAbout05-21-17 Public Comment - C. Courtenaye - Short Term Rentals1
Clerk Temp
From:Catherine Courtenaye <ccourtenaye@gmail.com>
Sent:Sunday, May 21, 2017 9:17 AM
To:Agenda
Cc:Jessica Johnson
Subject:Short Term Rentals
Attachments:Courtenaye-STR letter to City.pdf
Categories:Public Comment
May 21, 2017
Mr. Mayor, City Commissioners, and City Staff:
I hereby identify myself as an occasional short-term rental landlord. But then, you could have found that out
anyway because I am registered with the Montana Department of Revenue. I submit quarterly lodging
payments, aka, the bed tax. I have to spend three months out of state every year, caring for my mother, and do
not wish to leave my house vacant during that time.
STRs in Bozeman are thriving because there is demand. No regulation is going to stifle that demand. Is it not
better that visitors spend their dollars in the human-scale, neighborhood economy than
in
the chain hotel/corporate realm of the economy?
The zoning commission’s codifying of three types of STRs into Types 1, 2 and 3 is useful. Type 1 and Type 2
(owner-occupied) are manifestly different from Type 3. Types 1 and 2 seem to me to pose no risk to
neighborhood cohesiveness. Resident homeowners care about their own neighborhoods. Types 1 and 2 should
be allowed to operate legally in all city zones. Make it easy for us to comply with local ordinances. I would be
fine with a health & safety check of my home.
My neighborhood quality is affected more by intoxicated residents damaging my fence and trees on a Friday
night, or the blaring of music on a warm summer eve, or by the deafening blast of a Harley, than by the
minuscule number of short-term renters in town at any given time. Plus, these visitors are likely spending
money downtown. Most of my short-term guests are parents of MSU students or university-related academics.
As MSU’s student body grows, so do the affiliate relationships.
How many of you have ever used AirBnB? Are you familiar with its self-policing arrangement? It is really an
excellent system. Anything other than good behavior gets the guest demoted and lessens chances that he or she
will be accepted as a guest in the future at any other location. Similarly, if a guest leaves a negative review for a
host, such as, the property was trashy, it becomes a public document. Neither gets to read the other’s reviews
before submitting. Guests and hosts alike are equally motivated to be on best behavior.
I have house rules that stipulate no parties, no events. If the police were to be called due to noise, that is grounds
for immediate cancellation with no refund. Other hosts I know have similar policies in place. The good will of
neighbors means everything to us. How many college student rentals can claim the same in this town?
I used to have a problem. It was the house next door to me, a long-term rental. Turns out there was an illegal
grow operation in the basement. The three young renters left one February night under cover of darkness, six
2
years ago. Northwestern Energy cut off heat due to unpaid bills, and burst pipes on the top floor left the house a
near tear-down. The house was left vacant for about two years, with peeling paint, unshoveled sidewalks,
unmowed and unweeded front yard, and a box elder bug infestation worthy of a sci-fi movie (which I reported
to the City).
Then the house was sold, and, completely renovated, it is now rented out for part of the year, including
occasional STRs. The owners would not have been able to swing it without some rental income to help. They
have improved my neighborhood. The owners and I are friends and share tips on home maintenance and good
local contractors. I don’t have a neighbor problem anymore.
The current discussion is of course part of the larger how-to-deal-with-growth conversation. We homeowners
are seeing our property taxes and special assessments go higher and higher as more people put pressure on
existing resources. Don’t single us out. Renting out all or a portion of our homes for a few weeks out of the year
really helps us manage taxes, and helps us afford to keep our homes in tip top shape.
Platforms such as AirBnB are the future and the future is here. If you can’t beat ‘em, join ‘em. If you want a
part of the profits, then institute a reasonable fee akin to the City’s motel tax.
Please, please, do not move forward with the idea of publishing people’s names and addresses online. Ask the
police: this is a bad idea. What purpose could this possibly serve? My adjacent neighbors already know about
any guests I may have. I hire my next door neighbor to shovel the sidewalks when I’m not around.
Is it at all possible to pressure MSU and state legislators to build more dorms, so that working families don’t
need to compete so much with students for affordable housing?
Obviously this is a multi-pronged issue and I trust that you as my elected representatives will make a fair and
informed decision moving forward.
Sincerely,
Catherine Courtenaye
A copy of this letter is attached.
May 21, 2017
Mr. Mayor, City Commissioners, and City Staff:
I hereby identify myself as an occasional short-term rental landlord. But then, you could have
found that out anyway because I am registered with the Montana Department of Revenue. I submit
quarterly lodging payments, aka, the bed tax. I have to spend three months out of state every year,
caring for my mother, and do not wish to leave my house vacant during that time.
STRs in Bozeman are thriving because there is demand. No regulation is going to stifle that demand.
Is it not better that visitors spend their dollars in the human-scale, neighborhood economy than in
the chain hotel/corporate realm of the economy?
The zoning commission’s codifying of three types of STRs into Types 1, 2 and 3 is useful. Type 1 and
Type 2 (owner-occupied) are manifestly different from Type 3. Types 1 and 2 seem to me to pose
no risk to neighborhood cohesiveness. Resident homeowners care about their own neighborhoods.
Types 1 and 2 should be allowed to operate legally in all city zones. Make it easy for us to comply
with local ordinances. I would be fine with a health & safety check of my home.
My neighborhood quality is affected more by intoxicated residents damaging my fence and trees on
a Friday night, or the blaring of music on a warm summer eve, or by the deafening blast of a Harley,
than by the minuscule number of short-term renters in town at any given time. Plus, these visitors
are likely spending money downtown. Most of my short-term guests are parents of MSU students or
university-related academics. As MSU’s student body grows, so do the affiliate relationships.
How many of you have ever used AirBnB? Are you familiar with its self-policing arrangement? It is
really an excellent system. Anything other than good behavior gets the guest demoted and lessens
chances that he or she will be accepted as a guest in the future at any other location. Similarly, if
a guest leaves a negative review for a host, such as, the property was trashy, it becomes a public
document. Neither gets to read the other’s reviews before submitting. Guests and hosts alike are
equally motivated to be on best behavior.
I have house rules that stipulate no parties, no events. If the police were to be called due to noise,
that is grounds for immediate cancellation with no refund. Other hosts I know have similar policies
in place. The good will of neighbors means everything to us. How many college student rentals can
claim the same in this town?
I used to have a problem. It was the house next door to me, a long-term rental. Turns out there was
an illegal grow operation in the basement. The three young renters left one February night under
cover of darkness, six years ago. Northwestern Energy cut off heat due to unpaid bills, and burst
pipes on the top floor left the house a near tear-down. The house was left vacant for about two years,
with peeling paint, unshoveled sidewalks, unmowed and unweeded front yard, and a box elder bug
infestation worthy of a sci-fi movie (which I reported to the City).
Then the house was sold, and, completely renovated, it is now rented out for part of the year,
including occasional STRs. The owners would not have been able to swing it without some rental
income to help. They have improved my neighborhood. The owners and I are friends and share tips
on home maintenance and good local contractors. I don’t have a neighbor problem anymore.
The current discussion is of course part of the larger how-to-deal-with-growth conversation. We
homeowners are seeing our property taxes and special assessments go higher and higher as more
people put pressure on existing resources. Don’t single us out. Renting out all or a portion of our
homes for a few weeks out of the year really helps us manage taxes, and helps us afford to keep our
homes in tip top shape.
Platforms such as AirBnB are the future and the future is here. If you can’t beat ‘em, join ‘em. If you
want a part of the profits, then institute a reasonable fee akin to the City’s motel tax.
Please, please, do not move forward with the idea of publishing people’s names and addresses online.
Ask the police: this is a bad idea. What purpose could this possibly serve? My adjacent neighbors
already know about any guests I may have. I hire my next door neighbor to shovel the sidewalks
when I’m not around.
Is it at all possible to pressure MSU and state legislators to build more dorms, so that working
families don’t need to compete so much with students for affordable housing?
Obviously this is a multi-pronged issue and I trust that you as my elected representatives will make a
fair and informed decision moving forward.
Sincerely,