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By NANETTE LoBIONDO GALLOWAY
VENTNOR – Ventnor City, like most shore towns, is changing into more of a resort community than a place to live year-round. That change is making it difficult for some residents to peacefully coexist with visitors who come and go on a weekly or daily basis using online booking agencies.
Data compiled by an outside agency tasked with keeping the city informed about the proliferation of short term rentals has reported there are more than 400 properties registered with short term rental forums.
Officials were hoping to review the data as a follow-up to a recent public hearing with short term rental operators, but it may take weeks to cross reference the list with complaints registered with the Code Enforcement Department and the Police Department, Commissioner of Public Safety and Community Affairs Tim Kriebel said Friday morning.
The city uses Host Compliance LLC software at a cost of $18,801 a year to identify and track short term rentals on the various forums to ensure they comply with local ordinances.
In December 2018, the city adopted an ordinance requiring property owners to register for a mercantile license at a cost of $100 per year if they rent their properties for less than 30 days through online rental marketplaces, such as Airbnb, Evolve, HomeAway or VRBO.
“We are going to filter out the properties that don’t cause problems,” Kriebel said.
Ventnor is a mostly residential community with no place to rent a motel or rooms for the night and visitors who want to experience the “vibe of Ventnor” often turn to STRs for housing.
About 60 people attended the Board of Commissioners meeting on Sept. 22 to provide the commissioners with their opinions about the problems created by short term rentals, such as parking issues, noise complaints and excessive trash. The meeting was held in person and on Zoom after the commission discussed revising its short term rental ordinance to more closely regulate length of stays.
Officials in July said they are considering setting the length of stays to two or three nights or as long as a week. Currently, there is no guidance on the number of nights short term rental owners can allow, but occupancy is based on the city’s ordinance governing occupancy load based on the number of bedrooms available.
City Code Enforcement Officer Jimmy Agnesino said short term rentals have created a whole new job for the department. He said the department conducted inspections at 235 registered short term rentals for occupancy load and fire safety requirements, but there are many more operating without a mercantile license that haven’t been inspected.
Agnesino said the normal “coming and going” of visitors in the middle of the night isn’t breaking any laws, but they are generating noise complaints from neighbors.
He recommended increasing the minimum stay to two or three nights. Margate requires a week. Atlantic City has outlawed them in areas outside the Tourism District.
He said those who rent for just one night do not contribute much to the business community, and are in town to party or visit the casinos, coming home in the early morning hours and disturbing neighbors.
“The complaints are not stuff that you can write a ticket for and three strikes you’re out…they are a business operating as a motel” in a residential neighborhood, he said.
Seventeen homeowners who attended the meeting, most of whom rent apartments or spaces within their own homes, advocated for a two-night minimum stay.
Some said turnovers are too much work for a one-night stay. Others said they advocate for the business community and send visitors to local restaurants and shops and to the free concerts offered during the summer months.
Short term rental operators said they should not be penalized for bad operators.
One man who operates numerous STRs across the country said he does not permit one-night rentals and thoroughly screens applicants. He suggested noise monitors, such as Noise Aware, to alert property owners if the noise level inside the home exceeds normal standards. He also uses a local private company, Flynn’s Bins, to tend to the trash at STR units. Other operators use local companies to clean units after stays.
“Just don’t hurt the good guys, penalized the bad guys,” he said. “Figure out a way to make everyone happy.”
One woman said she has a two-night minimum and credited STRs for bringing new businesses to Ventnor.
“Something should be carved out for owner-occupied units,” she said. “I don’t want loud tenants…but you should not punish the people trying to do the right thing.”
The carveout should be for smaller units instead of the large beach block homes operating as “party houses,” she said.
A hospice nurse who lives above a STR unit said he doesn’t have a problem with people who stay for a week or month, but most of the problems come from those just saying a night or two.
One woman who rents larger properties for “multi-generational families” said she does not allow “auto bookings” which do not require screening of tenants.
“By going into the shoulder season with two-night minimums, we’ve expanded the ability for other businesses to benefit,” she said.
Yet another complained that shorter stays create gaps in rentals that negatively affect her “household’s second income.”
“This adds to my retirement fund,” she said.
Brenda Dowd, director of Ventnor Business Association, said STRs are “the lifeblood of the restaurants in the off season. They are an important part of this business community.”
Commissioners thanked residents for coming out to provide information they should consider before making a decision.
“We got a lot of great information,” Kriebel said. “If you multiply the use of 300 rental units by 52 weeks a year, that’s 15,600 opportunities for business. We have to be careful using a scalpel and not a sledgehammer.”
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