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HomeMy WebLinkAboutPlanning 2018-06-28 Minutes - Public Hearing - Zoning Code Amendments for Short Term Rentals City of Tukwila Planning Commission PLANNING COMMISSION (PC) MINUTES Date: June 28, 2018 Time: 6:30 PM Location: Council Chambers Present: Chair, Nhan Nguyen; Vice Chair, Dennis Martinez; Commissioners, Mike Hansen, Sharon Mann, Louise Strander, and Heidi Watters Absent: Commissioner, Miguel Maestas Staff: Nora Gierloff, Community Development Deputy Director, Charlotte Archer, City Attorney, and Wynetta Bivens, Planning Commission Secretary Adopt Commissioner Stander requested to amend the March 8, 2018 minutes, to reflect she Minutes: abstained from voting. Commissioner Martinez moved to adopt the 5/24/18 minutes as amended. Commissioner Hansen seconded the motion. All were in favor. Chair, Nguyen, opened the public hearing and swore in those wishing to testify. CASE NUMBER: L18-0045 Zoning Code Amendments APPLICANT: City of Tukwila REQUEST: Hold a public hearing to get community input on short term residential rentals (less than 30 days) and updates to associated regulations for boarding houses, bed and breakfast lodging and residential rental unit licensing. LOCATION: Citywide Nora Gierloff, Community Development Deputy Director, gave the presentation, and Charlotte Archer from the City Attorney’s Office, addressed clarifying questions. Background: Over a year ago the City Council had a work session on housing policy and wanted to look at what they could to do to encourage home-ownership and affordable housing in the City. They gave staff a list of prioritized actions to address, and staff has been working on updating the Accessory Dwelling Unit (ADU) regulations. This issue was heard by the Planning Commission last October and they made recommendations in February that went to the Community Development and Neighborhoods Committee and City Council. One of the issues raised during the review was that ADUs used for short term rentals were not contributing to the housing supply, this turned into a broader look at Tukwila’s short-term rental regulations. The Accessory Dwelling Unit ordinance is moving forward with a place holder prohibition on rentals of less than 30 days until the rules are decided Citywide. There are different issues for different housing types and zones. Should there be restrictions on parking, noise, or owner occupancy? And what sort of regulations or licenses would work best. A process is needed for Code Enforcement to have the tools necessary to enforce regulations. PUBLIC TESTIMONY: David Puki, citizen, is opposed to any short-term rental allowances. He said the City does not have the ability to enforce the code. He is in favor of the ADUs with owner occupancy in the main unit. He said there is currently a situation on the east side of his property, and many short-term tenants and cars coming and going, which has caused him problems. He said there has been on-going Code Enforcement issues on the property. He said he hopes short-term housing is not approved until the City can manage rentals and ADUs. Roger Lorenza, citizen, is in favor of ADUs and short-term rentals. He said any restrictions placed on people who own their own home is unrealistic. And the income received from rentals is needed. He said Airbnbs in Tukwila should not be compared to Seattle or other states. He said that there should not be a policy holder for prohibition; he said yes permit the use of residential housing in mixed use zones; do not require a license to operate a short term rental; he agrees with cleaning up the existing regulations, if the present code does not address the short-term rental than do not change the code; He said it’s expensive to buy a new home and if people want to rent out their home it’s their right. Terrance C. Morgan, citizen, is opposed to short-term rentals. He said he has spoken to the Mayor on these issues. Garcia Queuedo, citizen, is opposed to short-term rentals. He said the quality of life would be a major issue, and there would be parking issues. As well as environmental issues. He said change is inevitable, but it doesn’t have to be negative for the people who live in the community. Jenny Sims, citizen, is seeking support to allow Airbnbs and short-term rentals in the community but is against boarding houses. She said her family needs to rent out their basement to help with the mortgage. She said she likes the flexibility and the control that short-term rental allows. She said the long-term tenant laws are in the tenant’s favor, and it can be hard to evict problematic tenants. She said having Airbnb provide insurance is a safety net and makes her more comfortable having short-term rentals in her home. She said they would make more money with a long-term rental, but she is not doing it just for the money, but also the flexibility and convenience. She said the network is set up to weed out the problematic people, and she pointed out there are problems with both long-term and short-term rentals. She said she has had a very positive experience so far. She said even if short-term rentals are denied homeowner may not be able to create more long-term rentals due to cost to meet code requirements. She said many homeowners run Airbnbs to help combat the high rise in property taxes. She is not opposed to having regulations for short-term rentals if they are easy to follow and are not prohibitively expensive. Paul Winchester, citizen, is in favor of short-term rentals and has been running an Airbnb, for the past 18 months. He said he has not experienced any parking issues. He said he has been a long-term landlord for over 30 years, and long-term tenants are much more problematic then short-term rentals. He said his property is in better shape now that he has the extra income to maintain the property opposed to having long-term rentals. He said Airbnb vets the tenants. He said when he retires he plans to live at the property in the winter and during vacations, which would not be possible with long-term rentals. He said it provides good income and it has worked out well for him. He currently participates in the rental property program and has had the property inspected through the rental permitting process. He also has a business license, is paying his property taxes, and it is generating good revenue for the government. Patricia Perry, citizen, has been an Airbnb guest in different Cities, and she likes the experience of the personal touch better than hotels. She said she has property in Tukwila and if she needed to, she could run an Airbnb. She has considered it as she gets closer to retirement, to keep up with mortgage cost and property taxes. She said it irritates her being told what she can do with her home when she is the owner. She said progress is happening and it is hard, but she thinks there is a way to meet half way with this issue. She doesn’t think it has to be all or nothing. There were no additional public comments. Nora Gierloff, Community Development Deputy Director, stated this is a complex issue, and asked how do you develop regulations that allow you to enforce rules for problematic renters? Page 2 of 5 CLARIFYING QUESTIONS: Charlotte Archer, Tukwila City Attorney, and Nora Gierloff addressed clarifying questions for the Commission. The public hearing was closed. DELIBERATION: Commissioner Martinez said there was a lot of questions for staff and he does not want to rush into any decision without getting complete answers. He suggested staff combine all the answers and bring the information back to the Commission. He said it’s tough and some of the questions still lingering are valid concerns. Commissioner Strander said she would like clarification and more info on policy decisions for rental inspections. She inquired on the process if short-term rentals are approved? She asked if units would be subject to the City rental inspection program, or would it be different if a detached ADUs is rented, or a single-family residence, or a bedroom. Ms. Gierloff said she would be concerned with applying inspections to short-term rentals. She asked if a short-term rental is an ADU would it be subject to the parking requirements for ADUs? Commissioner Mann said she feels like she could support short-term rentals with the following requirements: (1) Requiring homeowners are licensed (2) Requiring a legal process for inspections. (3) Property is owner occupied, (4) A cap is placed on the number of rentals a property owner is allowed. (5) Requiring the owner be responsible for the parking needs, and for accommodating at minimum one parking space. Commissioner Nguyen said he is wondering if this is a solution looking for a problem. He said the issues identified are no different than the issues identified with long-term rentals. He asked why short-term rentals are being specifically targeted and the current rules for long term rentals are satisfactory. He said he agrees with licensing, compliance, and parking, but does not necessarily agree with owner occupancy. He said there is a platform for rating both the hosts and renters of short-term rentals, and that is a mechanism we should consider. He said parking restrictions make sense to him. He said we want people to come to our City to spend money, so we should consider economic development. We want to make housing affordable for people of all social economic status and their personal situations. He said the City should consider helping with mortgages because housing is so expensive. And accountability to up keep the property, and the traffic situation. He said short-term rentals could have a better vetting process then longer term rental. Commissioner Martinez said one of the conversations that has not been had is the prohibition of short- term rentals, and the individuals who have commented or sent emails stating their opposition for short-term rentals. He said they deserve some acknowledgement of their concerns. He said it is a tough situation, and at the very least we should let citizens know that we are thinking about them and do hear their concerns. He said one of biggest complaints that everyone has with municipalities is that the governing units do not listen to them. He said we are listening and have the same problems the citizens have, parking and the loud noise. Page 3 of 5 Commissioner Mann said she wanted to defend her requirement for owner occupancy. She said it would be less likely to have a short-term rental who is going to party in the owner’s house. And the owner will be more selective about who’s going to be in their house. Short-term rentals are a consideration to help first- time home buyers, or to help with high mortgages for individuals to stay in their homes. And it would be allowed for single-family residences, not for people to make money. She said investors trying to make money can take on the capital risk that comes with investing. She said there should be a cap of one rental per home, and asked how you enforce restrictions? She said she would be more comfortable allowing Airbnbs if restrictions are in place. Commissioner Nguyen was opposed to the idea to regulating the number of rentals a home owner is allowed, He said the more people renting Airbnbs the more they pay and depending on the size of the home there is the ability to rent to more people. He said he is totally for community and livability, but he does not want to stereotype people who chose to invest in our City. He said short-term rentals should be treated equally. Commissioner Watters said is makes sense to regulate short-term business operations in a commercial enterprise. She said for single family neighborhoods the City commonly regulates what businesses are allowed in single family zoned areas. And the zoning helps to keep quality neighborhoods, so there is a lot of regulation with zoning. She said the City’s role is to make sure trying to make money does not harm the quality of life in neighborhoods. She said it’s typical, and it’s important to protect families from investment pressure. She said she personally would not be able to compete with an investor for renting her house. She said it is important to think about families, and it’s a real asset in the City and we want to try to give citizens the tools necessary to make it. She said that may mean telling investors they are not allowed to invest in an area because people need to be able to live. Commissioner Mann said as appointed public servants as well as elected ones they have a job to do, and it is not to work for a specific group but to make the best community for everyone. She said the Commission’s job is to create livability for all citizens, and for single-family neighborhoods. Nora Gierloff asked how staff can help, and what the Commission would like brought back to them. ITEMS FOR STAFF TO BRING BACK TO THE COMMISSION:  A format for the rental housing inspections for the short-term rentals. (Martinez)  Information on how much revenue the City currently receives annually from short-term rentals. (Martinez)  Information on regulations from other communities the size of Tukwila such as, Bothell, Covington, Mercer Island, and Maple Valley. (Martinez)  Information on whether Sea Tac has considered short-term rentals (Watters)  Information on rental inspections and a recommendation on licensing and how it would work. (Martinez)  A chart of licenses for comparison, listing the various types of licenses other jurisdictions use and how they define them. (Watters)  Information on boarding houses, and negative impacts to hotels. (Watters)  Language on how the new rules will impact problematic boarding houses (Watters)  A recommendation for off-street parking spaces. (Strander) Page 4 of 5  A definition for owner occupancy, and information on whether there will be a difference between how they will be handled compared to ADUs (Strander)  A cap on the number of rentals allowed. (Strander)  Information regarding the impacts to the long-term rental market. (Nguyen)  A proposed ordinance, addressing licensing, inspections, owner occupancy, LLC limitations, parking and a cap for the number of rentals allowed, including condominiums. (Mann)  Language for multi-family potential short-term rental (Strander)  Implied Enforcement in the ordinance, which is really a big part of this decision and continues to be a main concern (Hansen) (Nguyen)  If a cap is required for short-term rentals, or owner occupancy is required (Nguyen) wants to see how it would look for long-term rental as well. How will it be affected.  Information on other City’s experiences regarding short-term rentals. (Nguyen)  Commissioners Hansen and Nguyen expressed interest in a joint work session with the City Council. Staff will request a joint work session and return with some potential dates. DIRECTOR’S REPORT:  Commissioner Nguyen talked about his attendance at the APA Conference, in New Orleans. He expressed his appreciation for the opportunity, said it was very helpful, and that it gave him a better appreciation of the work done by City staff. He encouraged all the Commissioners to attend when there are APA Conferences in the area in the future.  Due to a busy schedule it is necessary to hold a Work session to update the Environmental Sensitive Areas and Shoreline Codes. Tentative date is October 11, 2018.  Commissioner Martinez asked if the Commission would have the opportunity to tour project sites they have previously approved. Staff offered to provide some potential dates. ADJOURNED: 9:25 PM Submitted by: Wynetta Bivens Planning Commission Secretary Adopted: 7/26/18 Page 5 of 5