5/4/2023 5:15:00 PM Summerfield mulls easing rules for short-term rentals
A text amendment to the town's development rules would apply to all homeowners, not just the resident seeking the change
Trotter Ridge homeowner Joanne Bond explains to Summerfield’s Planning Board her plans to convert the two-story barn on her property into a short-term rental. Bond attended the board’s meeting on April 24 to present her request for an amendment to the town’s unified development ordinance. | Photo by Chris Burritt/NWO
by CHRIS BURRITT
SUMMERFIELD - After moving to the Trotter Ridge subdivision a year and a half ago, Joanne Bond has decided she wants to renovate a two-story barn on her property into living quarters.
She envisions hosting friends and family visiting her in Summerfield. She also wants to seek short-term renters through online booking service Airbnb. However, renting the stand-alone space for as many as 30 days requires Bond to convince the Summerfield Town Council to amend the town's unified development ordinance (UDO), which imposes numerous restrictions on short-term rentals.
Bond plans to present her case to the council next Tuesday, May 9, after gaining the support of the town's Planning Board last month. By unanimous vote, the board recommended approval of her request to remove the UDO's requirement that month-long rentals be located within the principal dwelling on the property, not in any other structure such as "a cabin, hut, tent, yurt, treehouse, teepee, etc."
"I want this to attract professional people to the area," Bond told the Board. In her application for the text amendment, the Windsor Farme Road homeowner said her short-term rental would be "an asset to visitors coming to the area to investigate suitable schools, universities and potential small businesses. If accommodations like this are professionally presented, I believe they will attract professional people to the area."
Town Attorney Bob Hornik pointed out that changing the text amendment would apply to all property owners, not just Bond. Although board members were impressed by her plans for converting the barn's 450 square feet of unfinished space into cozy quarters in compliance with town and Guilford County regulations, board member Clint Babcock said, "I want to make sure everybody else does what she does."
As a result, the board recommended the council stipulate that stand-alone short-term rental structures be properly permitted for occupancy by county inspectors. During its meeting next week, the council will seek public comments about Bond's text amendment request.
Regulating short-term rentals has become an increasingly common and sometimes divisive topic as the popularity of online booking services has grown. In recent months, the Greensboro City Council and the Planning and Zoning Commission have been gathering public comments about a proposed ordinance to regulate short-term rentals.
A Northwest Observer Facebook post last week about Bond's request prompted several readers to share their views about short-term rentals. Generally, readers supported the practice, but insisted that property owners require their guests to behave responsibly and respect neighbors.
"Let people decide what to do with their property," Phyllis Atchison wrote in a post. Added Judi Bastion: "No large parties."
In Oak Ridge, short-term rentals are not allowed by the town's zoning ordinance, according to planning director Sean Taylor. He added, however, that "in certain zoning districts, a bed and breakfast would be allowed if granted a special use permit. Bed and breakfasts are different in that they require owner occupation of the residence."
Stokesdale's ordinance "does not appear to explicitly regulate short-term rentals," said Justin Snyder, a senior planner in the county's planning and development department who assists Stokesdale with zoning and development matters.
Snyder noted that legislation pending in the state Senate would prohibit municipalities from regulating short-term rentals, except for requiring certain setbacks and zoning regulations and permits.
The state's Court of Appeals "recently struck down most of Wilmington's processes because under state law, regulation of someone renting out their home, even on a short-term basis, has been deemed illegal," Snyder said in an email earlier this week. "I do expect the state bill to pass in some form, but whether that happens in this legislative year is unknown."
