Planning Commission

TOWN OF MOUNT PLEASANT, SOUTH CAROLINA SPECIAL PLANNING COMMISSION JUNE 12, 2019 MINUTES Green arrows in minutes are hyperlinks to the recording PowerPoint Presentation Present:Joseph Wren, Chair, Roy Neal, John McNeill, Kathy Smith, George Gates, DeAudre Gregg, Don Campbell. Absent:Rodly Millet. Staff:Jeff Ulma, David Pagliarini, Kent Prause, Michele Canon, Austin Rutherford, Lynnette Lynes Mr. Wren called the meeting to order at 5:00 pm and introduced Mr. Don Campbell as the newest Commission member. 1.Approval of Agenda Mr. Neal moved for approval of the agenda. Mr. McNeill seconded the motion. All in favor. 2.Correspondence Ms. Canon stated that the Commission has been forwarded all correspondence. 3.Public Comment Mr. Ivan Milano stated that he is opposed to short-term rentals. He suggested that short-term rentals can have a positive economic impact on the Town. He suggested that the rentals do not need to be regulated and the fees are too exorbitant. He suggested that the HOAs should be responsible for regulating where short-term rentals are allowed. He suggested that requiring a business license ahead of the regulations is unfair as the regulations are currently not in place. Ms. Christina Carl, 660 Bank St, stated that she is in favor of licensing, but suggested that the fees should be reconsidered, particularly because of other fees that are assessed. She expressed concern with having the 1% maximum. Mr. Kevin High, Walkway Stays, suggested that the multi-family units should not be restricted from having short-term rentals. He suggested that the HOAs should regulate where short-term rentals are allowed. He suggested that allowing access to the home should be reconsidered and that this could be unconstitutional. He suggested that a permit should not be required. Mr. Trey Tezza, Mount Pleasant property owner, suggested that how the 1% maximum is determined should be reviewed. He stated that short-term rentals help supplement his income. Mr. Mark Sanford, King Street, suggested that it is important to have the opportunity to have short-term rentals. He suggested that the home owner should be able to be the steward of their home. He agreed that there should be reasonable regulation of short-term rentals. Ms. Alicia Lockwood, 316 Lapwing Lane, stated that she has a multi-family unit and would like to be able to have short-term rentals. She suggested that there are not problems with short-term rentals other than wanting to increase revenue and controlling potential overgrowth. Ms. Sarah Jacob, 1152 Village Creek Lane, stated that affordable housing should be a consideration when looking at short-term rental regulations. She suggested that short-term rentals eliminate property that could be utilized for affordable housing. Mr. Kenny Craft, 204 Spooner Lane, suggested that there is a perceived problem with short-term rentals and not an actual problem. He suggested that the parking requirements should be reviewed as they seem extreme. He suggested that there should be allowance for existing short-term rentals. Mr. Alec Graham, 1321 Belleview Drive, stated that he is in favor of short-term rentals. He suggested that there should be a fair and equitable comparison between the number short-term rentals and the number of hotel rooms and apartments in the Town. Mr. Zac Moore, 1041 Marsh Cove Lane, suggested that there has not been a complaint of short-term rentals. He suggested that the regulation of short-term rental is due to trying to regulate hotel use. He suggested that only a few members of Town Council see that short-term rental is an issue for the Town. He suggested that because of the differences between each short-term rental, it would be difficult to regulate them. Ms. Karen Keys, Turnkey rentals, stated that she has short-term rentals in townhomes and there have not been any complaints. She suggested that they should be allowed to continue to have short-term rentals. She expressed concern with having a 1% maximum for short term rentals. Ms. Denise Milano, Charleston, suggested that a bed and breakfast should not be regulated. She suggested that the HOAs should be allowed to regulate short-term rentals. Mr. Bill Macchio, Mount Pleasant Magazine, suggested that having short term rentals provides additional economic revenue for the Town. He suggested that there should be regulations and reasonable fees. Mr. Badge Humphries, 634 Williamson Dr, stated that he is supportive of short- term rentals. He suggested that the regulation of short-term rentals is overstepping the authority of the Town. He suggested that the regulations could be an infringement on property owner rights and HOA rights. Mr. Thomas Tisdale, 211 6th Avenue, asked for clarification on how access to the home would be regulated and expressed concern that there would not be advance notice for access to the property. He asked what would be considered an emergency and how the response would be regulated. Mr. Ben Stanio stated that he is in favor of short-term rentals. He suggested that HOAs should be held responsible for regulating short term rentals. Mr. John Clark, 521 Pelzer Drive, stated that he has a new short-term rental that has done well the past few months. He suggested that the short-term rentals add to the economic revenue for the Town. He suggested that the regulations should be as user friendly as possible. 4.Requests A.Text amendment: Proposal to amend chapter 156 of the Mount Pleasant Code of Ordinances by adding a new section entitled Short Term Rentals. The purposed of this new section is to define and regulate the use of residential units as short-term rentals in order to protect the integrity and character of the Towns existing neighborhoods, as well as the health and safety of occupant of short-term rental units. Ms. Canon reviewed the request with the Commission. Mr. McNeill asked the reason for generating the ordinance. Ms. Canon answered that the original intent of accessory dwelling units (ADUs) was to provide affordable housing for the Town; however, they have evolved more for short-term rentals. She stated that this discussion continued, and it became a question of whether they should be regulated. Mr. McNeill suggested that there is not a justified reason for the ordinance. Mr. Neal suggested that the base fee appears to have an excess of revenue. Mr. Wren asked if other municipalities have full-time employees. Ms. Canon answered in the affirmative and stated that the City of Charleston has four full-time employees. Mr. McNeill questioned the need for the fee and asked about the need for the affidavit. Mr. Ulma stated that in terms of enforcement and staffing, the Planning Department absorbs different programs and enforcement of those programs without always adding additional staff. He stated that currently the department has only one enforcement officer. This would be a way to pay for the cost of additional staff to handle enforcement of the program. Mr. Prause stated that the software currently used is only the basic software and it is anticipated that additional modules would need to be purchased to effectively enforce and regulate this program. Mr. Neal moved for denial of the request. Mr. McNeill seconded the motion. Mr. Neal suggested that the Committee has already extensively reviewed this issue and suggested that the Commissions role should not be to completely re-craft this ordinance. He suggested that this ordinance is “overreach and over taxation”. Ms. Smith suggested that the Commission should review the proposed ordinance and makes recommendations for changes if desired. She suggested that the cost can be justified and makes sense. She suggested that more discussion is needed. Mr. McNeill stated that the Commission should make a recommendation and not craft the ordinance. He suggested that because of the extensive changes that would be proposed, it would be better to deny the ordinance in its entirety. Mr. Wren agreed that there is still work that needs to be done with this ordinance. He suggested that there should be some regulation of short- term rentals, but the question is to what extent that regulation should be. Mr. Neal suggested that there are numerous items included in the ordinance that are in opposition of how short-term rentals should be regulated. Ms. Gregg suggested that there should be discussion. She noted that not all neighborhoods have an HOA and expressed concern that this would mean that more short-term rentals would be “pushed” to these neighborhoods. Mr. Gates asked if a joint meeting could be held to better understand the mindset of the Committee. Mr. Pagliarini answered that a recommendation from the Commission would need to be made within 30 days and suggested that it might not be feasible to schedule a joint meeting within that timeframe. Mr. Campbell suggested that there is not justification for the governance of short-term rentals. Mr. Wren also suggested that the progress of the proposed ordinance went to the Committee first, which is not how proposed ordinances typically progress. Ms. Smith suggested that the Commissions work might be for naught as the Committee worked on the proposed ordinance before it came to the Commission. Mr. Wren called for a vote on the motion. All in favor. Mr. Wren closed the public hearing. There being no further business, the meeting adjourned at 6 pm. Submitted by, L. Lynes SpPlanComsn06122019