People operating short-term rentals within Kamas city limits are now required to register with the city by Friday, April 10.
Only registered properties will be allowed to continue renting on sites like Airbnb and VRBO after the Kamas City Council passed a moratorium March 11.
“I hate using the word ban, because it just seems so absolute,” Councilmember Jessica Bateman said. “I'd rather do what we call a moratorium on any additional and continue with what we currently have.”
Across the board, councilmembers said they wouldn’t have approved the temporary ban on new listings if it didn’t grandfather in existing STRs.
A new state law allows Kamas to use online listings as evidence if someone violates the moratorium, but the city needs “additional information” such as neighbor complaints to actually shut down someone’s rental property.
“The enforcement is going to happen with the neighbors,” Councilmember Monica Blazzard said. “I don't think we need to have our thumb on them all the time. Like I said, this is their business. They're going to make sure that these homes look nice and they're well kept.”
City engineer Scott Kettle estimates about a dozen short-term rentals were operating in Kamas as of March.
Some are in High Star Ranch, which allows them through a development agreement with the city. The moratorium wouldn’t affect High Star’s agreement.
“I've never received a neighbor complaint in almost four years I've worked for Kamas,” Kettle said. “However, I will say that I receive phone calls from potential buyers looking at properties for sale for the purpose of STRs.
“Although we don't, currently, don't have a formal ordinance in place banning STRs, under our allowed use table … we're able to say that ‘any use that is not specifically designated as allowed is prohibited.’ And I do believe that this deterred some buyers from purchasing property specifically as an STR.”
A Summit County study found that STRs can increase housing prices and decrease the availability of long-term rentals in the market.
But the de facto ban Kettle described wasn’t enforceable until now.
Violating the March 11 ordinance banning any future STRs will be met with a warning, and if the rental continues, a $500 fine.
The short-term ban will be in place while the council debates long-term policy, city officials say.
Owners already running a short-term rental who want to continue renting have until April 10 to provide the city with evidence that they’ve been continuously using their property as an STR.
Those property owners will be required to get a business license with Kamas City, and their customers must begin paying the transient room tax. That’s a sales tax on hotel rooms and Airbnb rentals already imposed by Summit County and in other cities and towns.
Kamas councilmembers unanimously adopted a 1% transient room tax after pausing any new short-term rentals March 11.
The moratorium doesn’t affect bed and breakfasts, which are already licensed, but their customers will now have to pay the additional transient room tax.
