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By NANETTE LoBIONDO GALLOWAY
VENTNOR – Following public comments at its meeting Thursday, March 13, the Board of Commissioners tabled an ordinance scheduled for adoption that revises the city’s regulations on short-term rentals.
Several members of the public who spoke during the public hearing said the changes being made to the ordinance do nothing to increase security for residents who live near short-term rental properties.
Ventnor resident Beth Qwart, who owns six, two-bedroom vacation properties, said she has hosted 197 one-night rentals that brought more than 432 people to Ventnor, all without a single complaint or incident. Qwart said she rents mostly to couples in town for brief getaways.
“The ordinance you put forward doesn’t do anything to improve safety,” she said.
Online rental platforms, such as AirBNB and VRBO, only require a name, email address and payment information, she said. Some hosts don’t ask for government issued identification, which she requires for all her rentals.
“In theory, with the new ordinance an unidentified 18-year-old can book a house in Ventnor for not only one night but for a weekend-long banger. Banning one night rentals does not solve party houses or safety concerns. Crafting an ordinance with additional security measures can reduce parties and increase safety,” she said.
Qwart suggested the city review Atlantic City’s ordinance, which seems to be working well for both the city and the community, she said. Commissioners should consider requiring online short-term rental platforms to obtain government issued identification from the renter and establish a minimum rental age of 21.
“Please table the ordinance, and draft and ordinance with safety measures,” she said.
The ordinance under consideration included revisions to establish a minimum stay of two nights, increase the annual license fee to $500 and require property owners to prominently display on a placard at the entrance the occupancy load and emergency contact information.
Officials said the annual fee is in line with what other communities are charging and is about a third of what Atlantic City charges for just the summer season.
One resident said the proliferation of short term-rentals has turned a residential city into a motel. He recommended the city duplicate nearby Margate’s one-week minimum stay to attract families instead of party people.
Another resident said two-night stays are too short for Ventnor’s residential neighborhoods.
“I live in a residential area, but I have a hotel in front of me and a hotel behind me,” she said. “Parking is always an issue, especially when it’s only one or two nights.”
With longer stays, guests will spread out their visitors, freeing up parking for year-round residents.
“I’m not thrilled with strangers coming and going all the time. What do we want to be? Are we a hometown or a destination?” she asked. “We’re starting to lose the charm of what makes us special.”
Another woman said short-term rentals put a burden on the Police Department and other municipal services.
Another woman said there was “major drama” when a naked woman staying at a short-term rental property ran across the street from her house. Longer stays would keep out “riff raff” and reduce chaos, she said. Although she has security cameras, they will do little to protect her, she said.
“It should be at least five days to have families come here instead of crazies who are not supervised,” she said.
Her neighbor across the street said his home was the one that was “violated” last summer.
“A naked woman walked right into my living room because she was lost,” he said. “Longer rentals will bring in responsible people.”
Mayor Lance Landgraf and Commissioner Tim Kriebel said they liked the idea of requiring government-issued identification and having an age limit for renters.
“We have to write regulations and laws to handle the people who don’t act properly,” Landgraf said.
“We heard some comments tonight that we didn’t hear at previous meetings,” Commissioner Maria Mento said.
Attorney Elias Manos said the addition of an age limit and requiring identification would be a significant change to the advertised ordinance. He recommended the ordinance be tabled and reintroduced with the changes, which would require readvertising and another public hearing.
The commissioners agreed that establishing a two-night minimum was only a start to tightening the city’s short-term rentals, which many say bring visitors to town who support the business community.
Kriebel said the commissioners could further consider longer stays during the summer months next year, and limit two-night rentals to the off-season.
The commissioners agreed to table the ordinance before reintroducing it with the changes.
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