City to explore emergency ordinance

With a legislative bill expected to take effect July 1, the city will look into the possibility of pushing through an ordinance before then so it can be eligible for the grandfather clause.

The Legislature is continuing its work on a short-term rental bill that basically would allow any home to rent individual rooms like a hotel.

Many residents in single-family residential areas are concerned about added traffic and noise that could result in the frequent rotating of guests.

The county already has ordinances in place that would protect many coastal areas, such as Siesta Key, because the bill would honor all existing local laws.

However, the city has no such ordinances.

City Attorney Robert Fournier said what was most troublesome to him was the fact that the bill currently treats time-share properties as multifamily homes instead of hotels, as the city currently considers them.
Commissioner Terry Turner raised the possibility of the commission creating short-term rental restrictions before July 1.

Fournier said because zoning codes would have to be changed, which is a lengthy process, the city likely would have to enact an emergency ordinance.

He said he wasn’t sure if the issue met the criteria for an emergency ordinance, but he would look into it.

Contact Robin Roy at [email protected].