Shawnee appears poised to institute new restrictions on short-term rental properties, like AirBnBs, in many of its residential neighborhoods.
The Shawnee City Council dove back into the issue during a council committee meeting Monday.
No action was taken, but the majority of councilmembers signaled their desire to ban AirBnBs, VRBOs and other short-term rentals in single-family home neighborhoods.
There was also some discussion about adding other requirements in areas where they could be allowed, like new fees or taxes.
“This is getting kind of absurd,” council president Eric Jenkins said. “We don’t have neighborhoods so you can come in here and put mini-hotels in. It’s just not appropriate.”
What are Shawnee’s current rules?
- Shawnee does not place limits on where a short-term rental can be located, but it does require their owners to get business licenses and that comes with some fees.
- However, short-term rentals are currently not subject to some of the same tax rules as traditional hotels.
- Officially, there are 12 licensed short-term rentals in the city, though deputy city manager Caitlin Gard agreed there’s likely more since they tend to be “underreported.”
- Also, last year, Shawnee banned shared room rentals in its residential neighborhoods, sometimes referred to as a “co-living ban.”
Other JoCo cities have discussed short-term rentals
- Last year, a deadly shooting at an Overland Park home being used as a short-term rental prompted several Johnson County cities to reexamine policies on such operations.
- Overland Park explored several options in response to the shooting, including an outright ban, but has yet to formalize any new restrictions.
- Leawood doesn’t allow them at all, and Lenexa requires short-term rentals to be licensed.
- Across the state line, Kansas City, Mo., voters recently approved a special tax for short-term rentals in that city.
East Shawnee residents want something done
- On Monday, several residents from the McAnany Estates subdivision — between Nieman and Switzer roads, north of 55th Street — spoke out against short-term rentals in their area, which they said have proliferated in recent years.
- Deborah Hollingsworth, in reference to one house that is owned by a group that has several homes around Kansas City listed on short-term rental platforms, likened it to living next to a motel.
- Others said arrangements like these can hurt the housing market because they diminish the stock of single-family homes and push out families who might have wanted to buy a home in that neighborhood.
What are councilmembers asking for?
- Most councilmembers requested a resolution that would effectively ban short-term rentals in any area zoned R-1, which is exclusively for single-family housing.
- Councilmember Jill Chalfie said she can “sympathize” with neighbors who find themselves living next to a short-term rental property unexpectedly but wondered if a compromise might be possible by adding new regulations.
- Chalfie seemed hesitant to support an outright ban but expressed interest in establishing new regulations that, for instance, might limit the number of people who can occupy a short-term rental property.
Next steps:
- Jenkins said though the council is committed to taking action, it might take some time “to do it right.”
- City staff will need to study it further, and then it would likely come back to the council committee before going to a vote at a Shawnee City Council meeting.
- An exact timeline was not given on Monday.
- In the meantime, city manager Doug Gerber said city staff would be looking at ways to cut down on disturbances in neighborhoods that already have short-term rentals, like McAnany Estates.
Related news: Shawnee prohibits shared room rentals in residential areas of city
