No limits on parking, but 3-day-stay minimums, mercantile licenses set
SOMERS POINT — What had been a hot-button issue in the city by the bay for the past two years fizzled out to its ultimate conclusion March 9 when City Council passed new regulations on short-term rentals.
Following multiple meetings since City Council first addressed the issue, including early measures to control the practice — or facilitate it, depending on whom you ask — during which many people voiced opinions both for and against it, only one member of the public spoke during the hearing on the new rules.
Jim Oswald said he has a problem with what he characterized as a discrepancy in whether short-term rentals are being treated as a business or residence.
He said the owners must obtain a mercantile license and pay taxes on their income but do not have to adhere to other commercial zone rules such as providing off-street parking.
“You are charging a mercantile tax, you’re charging a hotel and motel tax. Why isn’t that a business?” he said.
Oswald said he supports regulations on the industry but asked that City Council somehow curb the number of vehicles allowed at one of the rental properties.
He suggested permit parking as a solution, saying that 10 people in one four-bedroom house plus those living in the other homes would amount to too many cars for one street.
“This is your time,” he said. “You have a chance to close the door and have this heavily regulated.”
There also was a letter from resident Josh Stroker that City Council President Janice Johnston read into the record.
Stroker stated he supports oversight such as safety inspections but feels “the proposed changes are too restrictive for Somers Point.”
Stroker stated renting individual bedrooms should not be prohibited, adding that traveling professionals often lease such spaces.
“I feel strongly that I should be able to do what I want with my property, within reason, of course,” he stated.
He also is opposed to the requirement that an owner must live within a 10-mile radius or hire a property manager within that zone.
He said 10 miles south is only the southern edge of Upper Township.
“So you could be a so-called local living in Cape May County with a second property in Somers Point but now you must pay a property manager on top of the additional taxes,” he stated. “It is possible to have 24/7 contact with a cell phone.”
Stroker stated that he feels Ordinance 7 “needs more work before it’s passed.”
The three measures approved March 8 are intended to increase oversight of the properties, which are booked through an online marketplace such as Airbnb for a limited time, as well as implement penalties for violations of noise and nuisance rules as a deterrent to appease concerned neighbors.
Ordinance 7 amends registration and inspection rules, adding the stipulation regarding a property manager. It also sets the minimum number of nights at three.
The ordinance establishes penalties for violations of between $250 and $1,000. Significantly, it defines “sustained complaint” as any credible complaint regarding a code violation whether or not charges result. Anyone receiving a second sustained complaint within one week is subject to a fine of $1,500.
The ordinance is broad regarding license revocation, stating a violation of any single regulation is grounds. It specifically states that three sustained complaints in one year could lead to loss of license.
Ordinance 7 also sets the maximum number of visitors at two per bedroom plus two and prohibits the renting of individual bedrooms, basements, attics, trailers, campers yards and swimming pools.
Ordinances 8 and 9 concern finances. The former sets the cost of an annual mercantile license, which all short-term rental owners must obtain, at $150, while the latter adds the entities to those subject to the hotel and motel room occupancy tax of 3 percent.
McGuigan tries again
Councilman Sean McGuigan, who has steadfastly opposed allowing short-term rentals anywhere in the city, tried one final time to convince others that the practice is not good for Somers Point.
“This is an ordinance that we voted to introduce last time and now it’s up for adoption or we could decline it. Even if you voted to introduce it you can change your mind and vote to not approve it,” McGuigan said.
Prior to opening the public hearing on Ordinance 7, he asked what the Short-term Rental Committee had recommended regarding short-term rentals.
Johnston said the professionals all agreed with all of the recommendations.
McGuigan asked if there were a recommendation from the zoning officer regarding the three-day minimum length of stay.
Councilman Howard Dill, a member of the committee, said the zoning officer was never asked his opinion on that matter nor did he offer one.
McGuigan noted there are “two premiere condominium associations” in the city that have a minimum rental of much longer than 30 days, which some residents asked council to impose.
“Why would those communities take those measures if they are not good for our community?” he asked.
He also said it’s never been clear what benefit Somers Point derives from allowing short-term rentals.
Johnston said the regulations are not intended to encourage but to control short-term rentals “that are already here, that have always been here and that are always going to be here.”
“They’re here, they’re not going anywhere and we need to have some control over them,” Johnston replied, noting her family stayed in what amounted to a short-term rental in Somers Point when she was growing up. “There were no restrictions, no inspections and no consequences for anything.”
McGuigan said the world has changed much since those days long ago.
The platforms have become more prevalent.
“We’re only seeing really the beginning of this and these will continue to proliferate, and that is why many communities have taken measures to curtail them basically completely. I don’t know why our community can’t protect our neighbors,” he said.
Johnston said her research revealed that the communities that have banned short-term rentals have plenty of other accommodations.
Councilwoman Karen Bruno argued that setting a 30-day minimum stay would only force people to break the rules, noting there are serious fines now in place to address violations.
McGuigan was the lone no vote for Ordinance 7 and 8 but joined the majority for Ordinance 9.
City Clerk Lucy Samuelsen stated in an email that the ordinances must be advertised in a newspaper, which she anticipated would happen March 16, and then submitted to Mayor Jack Glasser for his signature.
“Once it is published and the mayor signs it, it will become effective,” she stated.
By CRAIG D. SCHENCK/Sentinel staff
