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Airbnb shows the locations of Manistee rental properties. (Screenshot/Airbnb)
Airbnb shows the locations of Manistee rental properties. (Screenshot/Airbnb)
Airbnb shows the locations of Manistee rental properties. (Screenshot/Airbnb)
Airbnb shows the locations of Manistee rental properties. (Screenshot/Airbnb)
Editor’s note: This is the first in a series of ten stories revisiting and recapping the biggest non-coronavirus news in Manistee in 2020.
Short-term rentals were unquestionably a hot topic in the Manistee area this year, spawning heated debates at local government meetings, scores of letters to the editor and a three-part series in the News Advocate.
Here’s recap of the decisions made this year relating to short-term rentals.
FILER TOWNSHIP
First, Filer Township created Chapter 35, the township’s own short-rental ordinance. It was made official at the Filer Township Board’s Jan. 7 meeting.
The ordinance requires all short-term rental operators in Filer to get a license from the township. To do this, they must submit an application, have their property inspected and follow guidelines on the location of firepits, parking, the abilities of the property’s septic system, and the property’s maximum occupancy.
The ordinance also requires the owner post a weatherproof sign with their name, address and phone number or that of the local agent near the property’s main entrance.
These requirements were not enough for some Filer residents. A few expressed concerns about the ordinance at a Filer Township Planning Commission public hearing on Sept. 15 and called for an amendment that would regulate how many times a short-term rental can be rented out in a calendar year,
Instead, after months of debate, the township board introduced amendments in December making short-term rental licenses good for one calendar year, at which point the property owner would need to apply for another year’s license and pay a fee. The board voted to make that fee $500. The amendments also require an additional sign with the same information placed in the property’s front yard so that it’s visible from the street.
CITY OF MANISTEE
The planning commission in Filer wasn’t the only body to hear a lot of public input on short-term rentals this year. At its Oct. 1 meeting, the Manistee City Planning Commission crafted four recommendations for a short-term rental ordinance, after hearing from numerous residents who were both for and against regulating the properties.
Those recommendations were passed on to city council at its Oct. 13 meeting and the council voted to have city staff compile a report on the topic.
In the meantime, the News Advocate published a three-part series looking deeper into claims made at the meeting about the impacts of short-term rentals in the city.
The most recent development was City Manager Thad Taylor outlining his ideas for a city ordinance to the council at its Dec. 8 meeting.
Those ideas include:
• Adding short-term rentals to the city’s rental inspection program;
• Requiring short-term rentals to register as a business or creating a separate license and fee program with the option to revoke licenses based on complaints or the property’s appearance;
• Allowing condo associations to decide whether they will allow short-term rentals; and
• Limiting the number of short-term rentals in residential districts, but not in commercial districts or the Manistee Downtown Development Authority district. The limit would be informed by the number of short-term rentals currently in the city.
MANISTEE COUNTY
Short-term rental ordinances have also moved forward in Onekama, and the discussion has also been brought forward in Manistee Township.
RELATED: ‘It disturbs the peace:’ Filer Township residents call for limits on short-term rentals
RELATED: ‘If we can’t beat them, let’s regulate them:' Filer Township introduces short-term rental amendment
RELATED: ‘We’re not trying to take something away’: Council discusses short-term rental ordinance
RELATED: Short-term rentals: Following the money in Manistee County
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December 28, 2020 at 12:00PM
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Year in review: Manistee area's short-term rentals spur debate in 2020 - Manistee News Advocate
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