- April 25, 2024
-
-
Loading
Loading
After two months of citizens arguing for and against short-term rentals before the Volusia County Council, members will make a decision on whether or not to amend the county's ordinance at the council's next meeting on Tuesday, May 18.
The council was supposed to appoint two more members to its newly-formed Short Term Rental Advisory Committee (Council members Fred Lowry's and Barb Girtman's appointments) at its meeting on Tuesday, May 4, but the council voted 6-1 to eliminate the short-lived committee instead. This was a result of a motion made by County Councilman Ben Johnson, who said the committee was supposed to help in case the short-term rental bills passed in the House and Senate. However, the bills never made it out of committee, and he was ready to make a decision.
“We’ve heard arguments pro, con, all the way around," Johnson said. "We’ve had information sent to us. I myself don’t really need to hear the same arguments again the next time.”
The current ordinance requires a minimum of 30-day rentals for single family homes and condos in county residential zones. If the council decides to amend it at its next meeting, the new ordinance would have to go through the Planning and Land Development Regulation Commission before coming to the council for approval.
For the past few meetings, several Bethune Beach residents, all clad in matching green shirts, have ardently spoke against short-term rentals in their neighborhoods. Ricky Schrader said the issue of short-term rentals has already been debated and that the current ordinance was the compromise of that debate. There is a reason, he stated, the prior council referred to vacation rentals as hotels and motels — there is an unpredictability to account for when living next to one.
“When people choose to live in a neighborhood, they are seeking a certain way of life," Schrader said. "One filled with a spirit of community, where people get to know and trust each other. People have a sense of security when they know who lives next door to them.”
But short-term rental owners have not yet given up. Steve Murray, who owns a vacation rental in Bethune Beach, said he paid $45,000 in property taxes last year in addition to $10,000 in tourist development taxes. People have been renting beachfront homes for decades in Volusia, he said, and the rentals play a critical role in Florida's tourism industry. Short-term rentals are the new trend, and Murray said Volusia is ignoring this.
“You can remove homes from the supply in Volusia, but the demand will remain, and until the supply is replenished, tourists will take their money to the other counties where they are appreciated," Murray said.
County Councilman Jeff Brower responded to the claims stating he ran to serve all Volusia residents, and that includes listening to those that represent the minority in issues as well. With the amount of short-term rentals in Volusia — last month, Brower told the Ormond Beach Observer that there were over 7,000 short-term rentals in the county, with around 2,000 in unincorporated areas — Brower said those property owners deserved a voice too.
He said he was voting against the motion because he believed there was a benefit to people on opposing sides of an issue sitting down and having conversations.
“If you want me to be ashamed for bringing this before the council, I’m not," Brower said. "That’s my job.”
