Planning Commission

RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS OF THE PLANNING COMMISSION CITY OF BELLINGHAM, WASHINGTON Thursday 7:00 PM January 18, 2018 City Council Chambers Video Recorded www.cob.org Call to Order / Roll Call Present: Ali Taysi (Chair), Garrett O'Brien (Vice Chair), Phyllis McKee (Commissioner), Mike Estes (Commissioner), Iris Maute-Gibson (Commissioner), Lisa Anderson (Commissioner) Absent: Steve Crooks (Commissioner) Approval of Minutes None to approve. Public Comment Period Opportunity for citizens to speak informally to the Planning Commissioners on any subject not listed on the agenda. Speakers are allowed a MAXIMUM of three (3) minutes to address the Commission. Speakers will not be required to disclose their address. No testimony given. Work Session Work session to continue the discussion on options for the new BMC section on short-term rentals. STAFF PRESENTATION Lisa Pool presented an overview of the process followed to date and shared some statistics on the number of active listings in Bellingham. She shared some of the community concerns that have been shared through the process. She commented that the draft standards that staff has proposed would be applicable to any of the three options before the Commission. Lisa reviewed Option C and explained that it was a blend of the two options shared with the Commission at the January 4 work session. She shared the specifics of each option. PUBLIC COMMENT Nine members of the public addressed the Commission. PLANNING COMMISSION COMMENTS / QUESTIONS Lisa Anderson presented an idea of her own, "Option D", and reviewed it with the Commission. Staff pointed out that the hotel / motel industry has expressed an understanding related to the importance of providing different options for tourists visiting Bellingham, as long as those that offer short-term rentals also share in the contribution of lodging taxes. The Commission discussed the idea of "whole house rentals" in single-family residential zones. There was concern expressed that houses would be / have already been taken out of the housing stock, which is not in the best interest of the community given the current vacancy rate. It was suggested that this option (whole house rentals) be revisited when the vacancy rate has changed. There was general consensus that multi-family and urban villages should be considered different from single-family neighborhoods. There was a conversation about the best language to use in the ordinance to indicate the number of days a resident must be present in the home and how many total days per year a rental at that location could occur. MOTION: Garrett O'Brien / Phyllis McKee moved to request staff consider a reasonable solution to allow the use of D-ADUs as a short-term rental in residential-multi, commercial and urban village zoned areas. There was a point made that short-term rentals in detached accessory dwelling units could be appropriate in certain zoning areas. There was a suggestion that different usage limits might be considered for different types of units in appropriate zones. A clarification was made that, although accessory dwelling units (both detached and attached) are being used for short-term rentals, they are not permitted at this time, unless a valid bed and breakfast facilities permit has been obtained when applicable. VOTE: CARRIED 6-0. MOTION: Iris Maute-Gibson / Garrett O'Brien moved to recommend that one Type III-A permit (obtained through the CUP process) be allowed per owner, and this can be a non- resident occupied unit. The group discussed the CUP process that would need to be gone through in order to obtain a permit for a non-occupied short-term rental unit. A brief discussion on the impact to housing stock was also had. MOTION: AMENDMENT: Iris Maute-Gibson / Mike Estes moved to include a cap on the issuance of Type III-A permits for short-term rentals to 80, once that cap is achieved, review of the Type III-A process for short-term rentals shall occur. Through discussion it was pointed out that it would help to address unforeseen circumstances that could be occurring, but this could also be achieved by directing staff to consider a process that would work for the City. VOTE: Fail 1-5. (Opposed: Taysi, McKee, Estes, Maute-Gibson, Anderson) MOTION: AMENDMENT: Iris Maute-Gibson / Garrett O'Brien moved to direct staff to consider including a cap / trigger, related to Type III-A short-term rental permits, where at which time it is achieved, the Type III-A process in the ordinance is reviewed. VOTE: CARRIED 6-0. Commissioner Anderson stated that she was not in favor of allowing the "whole-unit" rental option until there was improvement in the housing vacancy rate. She suggested that staff consider making the vacancy rate the trigger / cap. The motion, including the amendment, was restated. VOTE: CARRIED 5-1. (Opposed: Anderson) MOTION: Mike Estes / Garrett O'Brien moved to allow for the Type 1 (2 bedrooms) and the Type II (up to 5 bedrooms) processes to occur in a primary residence. MOTION: AMENDMENT: Garrett O'Brien / Mike Estes moved to limit the number of total rental days to 90. There was support expressed for this limitation because it was easy to monitor, while still providing for the owner economically. It was also pointed out that if someone wished to rent their unit for a longer time frame, the CUP process would be available to them. VOTE: CARRIED 5-1. (Opposed: McKee) The motion, including the amendment, was restated. VOTE: CARRIED 5-1. (Opposed: McKee) MOTION: Garrett O'Brien / Lisa Anderson moved to limit property owners to one unit regardless of Type in single-family zones. There was brief discussion about the appropriateness of multiple units being rented in zones other than residential. A conversation was also had related to the rationale of limiting the number to one total rental unit. VOTE: Fail 2-4. (Opposed: Taysi, McKee, Estes, Maute-Gibson) MOTION: Iris Maute-Gibson / Phyllis McKee moved to allow a property owner a Type I or a Type II short-term rental unit, and a Type III-A, but the total number of units cannot exceed two. VOTE: CARRIED 4-2. (Opposed: O'Brien, Anderson) It was suggested that language be included in the ordinance that mimic some of the language they would see on the short-term rental sites. Staff indicated that a more appropriate method would be a handbook that the ordinance could reference. Old/New Business The Commission elected new officers for 2018. Ali Taysi was nominated to be Chair. He accepted the nomination and with no objection, was appointed as the Chair. Mike Estes was nominated to be Vice-Chair. He accepted the nomination and with objection, was appointed at the Vice-Chair. The Commission reviewed some of the Robert's Rules of Order guidelines they will be using in future meetings. Next Meeting: January 25th - Public Hearing on amendment to the ADU Ordinance. Adjournment Minutes prepared by: ____________________________________________ Heather Aven, Recording Secretary Minutes edited by Planning Commission members and various Planning Staff.