Shawnee will ban short-term rentals like AirBnB and VRBO in single-family neighborhoods.
After its fourth meeting on short-term rental businesses, the Shawnee City Council on Monday decided to explore the option of banning them entirely in residential areas.
During the city council committee meeting, the city council asked city staff to draft an outline that will ban rental businesses like AirBnB and VRBO in R-1 (single-family residential) districts.
The council chose a ban over regulations
At the start of the meeting, City Manager Doug Gerber presented them with two options to explore: A ban or regulations on short-term rentals.
After neighbors provided concerns of parking problems, noise complaints and alleged sexual harassment because of an AirBnB, the city council chose to explore a ban.
Because the meeting was for informational purposes, no formal vote was taken.
It took a group of neighbors to sway the city council
Four neighbors from Ward 4, which is represented by councilmembers Jill Chalfie and Jacklynn Walters, outlined problems with a property operating as an AirBnB, alleging it was purchased by an outside contractor and occasionally rented out for large, raucous parties.
Larry Diehl said one of the worst cases was when a group of men rented the property.
“Those adult males decided to drink and let their hormones go wild and in the process, they started catcalling [my neighbor’s] wife in his backyard. There is no place for that kind of nonsense in an R-1 district,” he said.
After the incident, Diehl said his neighbors don’t feel safe outside.
Echoing other comments from neighbors, Deal said he doesn’t like the idea of people living in the neighborhood without any notice.
“I think that’s horrible that somebody comes in the neighborhood without us approving them and destroys a family,” he said. “We do have a quiet neighborhood and I think they are exploiting that idea in its entirety.”
The city council sees a ban as more feasible to enforce
While the city council previously weighed the pros and cons of bans versus regulations, Councilmember Eric Jenkins said a ban for single-family (R-1) districts made more sense.
“[Neighbors] are not looking forward to living next to a mini apartment with 15 people raising hell in there,” Jenkins said. “That’s not an expectation a homeowner has when they invest in a home and move to a residential neighborhood and I think we need to honor that to the maximum.”
While Councilmember Kurt Knappen began the meeting in favor of regulations, he moved towards a ban after hearing the neighbors’ stories.
“I think there’s some redeeming qualities to [short-term rentals],” he said. “But, to be honest with you, I think you changed my mind, based on some of these examples and what you’re going through.”
Councilmember Jill Chalfie also voiced her support for the ban, stating that the material testimony is a help in identifying problems with short-term rental properties in residential areas.
“A lot of people have reached out and e-mailed us. We’ve spoken to a lot of people,” she said. “I just want to thank you guys because I feel like your statements and arguments were what I was waiting to hear from somebody.”
The ban would apply rentals less than 30 days long
Jenkins said the focus on bans will be strictly R-1 districts, although it might widen its scope in the future.
City Attorney Jenny Smith said city staff will explore a hybrid model that would combine a ban with a special use permit for some areas.
“We would be looking at an all-out ban with a caveat that allows for it, with an SUP process in R-1 zonings,” she said.
City staff will explore how other cities, such as Kansas City, Missouri, and Dallas, imposed restrictions on short-term rentals.
One of its concerns will be the phase-out period for properties currently operating as a short-term rental. Jenkins said he wanted to see it be as short as possible.
“We got them already out there. What’s going to be the time frame that we can shut that down, if we pass an ordinance?” he said. “There’s always some kind of limitations on us for how fast you can do that. But I would like to do that [in the] most expeditious way possible.”
Gerber said city staff will draft a “nucleus” of the ban and expect it to be brought up at a city council meeting within the next month.
Go deeper: Watch the discussion on short-term rentals [Starts at 17:38]
