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New moratorium in effect on vehicle rental businesses

New moratorium in effect on vehicle rental businesses

Written by SUN contributor on . Posted in Community News, Holmes Beach.

HOLMES BEACH – Concern about the number of low-speed vehicles in the city and the potential for incoming additional rental companies has prompted Holmes Beach commissioners to enact a six-month moratorium.

The moratorium, approved in a four-to-one vote during a July 27 meeting with Commissioner Jim Kihm dissenting, blocks the applications for new low-speed vehicle rental businesses coming into the Island city. It does not apply to current businesses or those with pending site plans, such as the pending application for The Toy Barn.

Kihm said he feels that some discussion on the number of low-speed vehicles in the city may merit some conversation but he felt that a moratorium would be premature at this point.

The issue was brought to the attention of commissioners by fellow Commissioner Jayne Christenson. She said she feels that the number of low-speed vehicles taking to city streets is dangerous, particularly with some people not wearing seat belts, piling more people in the vehicle than it safely seats and generally treating the vehicles as toys while on vacation. She suggested the moratorium as a way for city officials to research the problem and try to find a way to make city streets safer without allowing any new rental businesses to set up shop in Holmes Beach.

City Attorney Patricia Petruff warned commissioners they need to manage their expectations concerning the moratorium, noting that while it does prevent a business from opening a brick-and-mortar location in the city, it doesn’t stop one from bringing vehicles in on a trailer to deliver them.

When it was suggested the city require a business tax receipt for anyone doing a business delivery in the city, it was quickly shot down because of the potential logistical and legal issues it would cause. Petruff said it wasn’t realistic for commissioners to require a BTR for anyone delivering in the city because it wouldn’t just apply to low-speed vehicle renters but also food delivery and other services.

Kihm said he would like to spend some time looking at what the issues are concerning the golf cart-like vehicles and mini cars rented by vacationers. And while he’s concerned about traffic, Kihm said moving vehicles through the Island cities is a multi-faceted problem that’s going to need creative solutions.

Commissioner Carol Soustek said she’s unsure of what the city can do as the low-speed vehicles are considered legal vehicles and the city cannot regulate the number of vehicles on the road.

Christenson said she’s heard a low-speed vehicle rental business, one that’s already bringing vehicles into the city for rent without having a brick-and-mortar location, ZoomAround, is considering purchasing the former Wells Fargo location at the corner of Marina and Gulf Drives, just in front of the Shops at Waterline where The Toy Barn is planning to relocate if their site plan is approved by city leaders.

Though the former Wells Fargo property is currently listed as off the market, no sales have been recorded according to Manatee County property appraiser records.

For a vehicle rental business to open in the space, City Planner Bill Brisson said it would require a special exception for the change in use at the property from commissioners. The sale of the property also could negatively impact the Waterline Marina Resort and Beach Club which has a lease with Wells Fargo for the use of 20 parking spaces for the resort and adjacent marina.

Brisson said the parking spaces, which are part of the former bank property, are part of the required parking for the resort and marina.

Commissioners instructed staff to send a letter with approval from Mayor Judy Titsworth to management at the Waterline resort to see what their plans are for the required parking spaces for the resort and marina.

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Mayor requests temporary end to vacation rentals

Written by SUN contributor on . Posted in Community News, Holmes Beach.

HOLMES BEACH – Mayor Judy Titsworth has issued an official request to stop all new vacation rentals in the city in response to the coronavirus pandemic.

In an effort to stop the spread of COVID-19, Titsworth issued a letter March 25 to all vacation rental owners and agents in the city asking them to stop taking new reservations for the time being. The request does not affect reservations that were already made, though each vacation rental owner or agent may have different policies regarding reservations during this time.

Titsworth’s request states that it’s in response to two executive orders issued by Gov. Ron DeSantis. One order requires all people entering Florida from an area with substantial community spread of the virus to self-isolate for 14 days upon entering the state. The states mentioned in the order include Connecticut, New York and New Jersey, and was later amended to add Louisiana.

The second order involves a public health advisory asking all people over age 65 to stay home and take other measures to limit their potential exposure to the virus.

In response to Titsworth’s request to suspend vacation rental reservations, Barbara Sato, president of the Anna Maria Island Vacation Property Association, forwarded a letter stating that the group will be taking proactive steps for rental properties in Holmes Beach.

Effective March 25 and continuing for three arrival weeks, the group agreed to not take any new reservations for vacation rental properties in Holmes Beach unless the reservation is for one month or longer. Existing reservations for people arriving from the states mentioned in DeSantis’ order are canceled for the next two weeks with the issue to be re-evaluated weekly. Also, for the next three weeks, the group of rental agents agreed to limit the occupancy in vacation rental units to no more than 10 confirmed guests.

Members of the property association include Anna Maria Island Accommodations, Coastal Cottages, AMI Vacation Rentals, Duncan Real Estate, Fran Maxon Real Estate, Island Real Estate, Lizzie Lu’s Island Retreat and Sato Real Estate.

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Biz tax changes take shape

Written by SUN contributor on . Posted in Community News, Holmes Beach.

HOLMES BEACH – Good news may be coming for owners of residential rental properties in the Island’s largest city.

Commissioners voted four to one on June 11 to exempt residential rental properties from a requirement to have a business tax receipt, with Commissioner Rick Hurst dissenting. For owners of vacation rental properties, those rented for less than 30 days, the requirement to have a BTR is in addition to a requirement to have a vacation rental certificate.

The exemption does not apply to motel or hotels for which the BTR annual fee is currently $191.44 plus $3.82 per unit.

City staff estimates there are 506 annual or monthly rental units currently with BTRs and about 1,200 vacation rental units. It currently costs $31.90 for each rental unit to obtain a BTR. Though the city pulls in an estimated $54,000 from rental unit BTRs, City Clerk Stacey Johnston says the city is actually losing funds because of the time and many employees it takes to verify and complete the applications.

For the 506 annual and monthly rentals in the city, at $31.90 each the BTRs bring in $16,141 for the city. Due to expenses from employee time without complications that need to be remedied on the application, Johnston said each BTR actually costs the city $9.55 to process, leading to a loss of $4,833.90.

She said the process to approve a BTR is a long one, involving five steps, six employees and a lot of work that takes away from the employees’ other duties.

If commissioners agree to increase the amount of the vacation rental certificate, which must be renewed every other year, Mayor Judy Titsworth said that program will gather the same information as a BTR from vacation rental owners and absorb the cost and loss of funding to the city. What commissioners will lose is the funding from the 506 annual and monthly residential rentals, which staff says won’t actually be a loss because of the processing costs to the city.

Rather than doing away with the requirement for a BTR, Hurst suggested looking at simplifying the BTR process, saying that “it just seems like this process is just too complicated” for a $31.90 fee.

Titsworth agreed that the idea has merit, suggesting staff look into what the minimum state requirements are for a BTR and if the process can be simplified. She agreed to provide a staff report with more detailed information for the ordinance’s second reading, expected when commissioners next meet on June 27.

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Commissioners consider exemption for rental homes

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Commissioners consider exemption for rental homes

Written by SUN contributor on . Posted in Community News, Holmes Beach.

HOLMES BEACH – Vacation rental owners may soon have one less piece of paperwork to worry about filing in one Island city.

During a May 30 work session, commissioners began discussing whether or not to do away with the requirement that vacation rental owners apply for and receive a business tax receipt for every unit they own in the city. City Attorney Patricia Petruff said that for the small amount of income the city receives from the BTR applications from rental owners, $31.90 per unit annually, processing the high number of applications has become a burden for city staff. She said that Mayor Judy Titsworth had requested the commission discussion on the issue.

“It was a nightmare,” Titsworth said to commissioners of the processing of large amounts of BTRs. “Why continue this nightmare of trying to keep track of it all when there’s no benefit?” She added that it costs the city more in staff time to process the applications than is earned through the BTRs.

In a breakdown of the costs to process the BTRs for 506 individually owned vacation and annual rental units provided by the city clerk, with no complications it costs $41.45 in staff time to process a single BTR, which costs $31.90 for the applicant, resulting in a loss of $9.55 per BTR. The total loss to the city is $4,833.90 annually according to the supplied calculations. In total, it’s estimated the BTRs for vacation and annual rentals represent somewhere around $60,000 for the city.

Rather than charge rental owners through the BTR, Titsworth suggested commissioners consider an increase in the vacation rental certificate required for all short-term rental properties renting for less than 30 days to make up the difference in finances.

VRCs are required to be renewed every two years and currently cost $150 for the initial application and renewal. During their June 11 work session, commissioners are expected to consider an amendment to the VRC to raise the cost of initial application and renewal to $600 per vacation rental unit.

If the BTR requirement was removed from rental units, Petruff said the longer term, 30-day rentals would basically have no oversight by the city as they are not required to apply for a VRC. She said code enforcement officers would have to try to catch violators of the minimum rental period or occupancy requirements through advertising. Police Chief Bill Tokajer said that the financial impact to the city from those units, a few hundred in number, could be easily recouped through the around 1,200 VRCs issued to short-term rentals.

Commissioners agreed to consider the issue but said they want to see more information about how the loss of revenue would affect the city and how it could be made up through the VRC program.

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Vacation rental changes on hold for now

Holmes Beach vrc presentation chief

Vacation rental changes on hold for now

Written by SUN contributor on . Posted in Community News, Holmes Beach.

HOLMES BEACH – It’s been a long, sometimes rough road for the city’s vacation rental certificate program and the code enforcement officers who oversee it since the program’s inception two years ago. Now with the first round of certificate renewals occurring, commissioners are re-evaluating the program.

On second reading, an amendment to the VRC program failed due to a list of questions and concerns voiced by Commissioner Jim Kihm that caused his fellow commissioners to agree to take the amendment back to a work session rather than vote to approve the suggested changes. The amendment will now be studied by commissioners in a work session before returning to regular meetings for two public hearings and votes before any changes can be enacted.

The decision came the same day that Holmes Beach Police Chief Bill Tokajer hosted a stakeholder public forum for short-term rental owners and agents to come to learn about the proposed changes to the program and ask any questions. Now those changes may or may not materialize.

The primary reason for enacting the changes to the program was to give code enforcement officers the ability to immediately fine property owners for some violations of the certificate program including misleading advertising, renting for higher occupancy than allowed or for fewer days than permitted, and for not including the unit’s VRC number on advertising. With the program in its second year, Tokajer said the ticketing changes would help to reinforce the city’s stance on violating the program.

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Rental property owner Lynn Tran appeared before commissioners Nov. 13 during public comment to explain why the additional advertising requirements proposed in an update to the city’s vacation rental certificate program could be problematic for short-term rental owners and agents. – Kristin Swain | Sun

Rental owner Lynn Tran spoke to commissioners during public comment about the proposed changes to the program and how requiring property owners and agents to add more information to advertisements could become a hardship due to increased cost. She suggested finding a compromise between what the city wants and what’s considered reasonable for owners.

Though the changes to the VRC are going back to a work session for further review and discussion, commissioners did vote unanimously in favor of approving a contract with Host Compliance LLC in San Francisco for $30,600 to monitor rental advertisements for Holmes Beach properties online and alert police when a potential violation of the rental certificate program is noted. Sample violations include the advertised length of stay or occupancy and the lack of a VRC or business tax receipt number in the advertisement.

Once alerted of a potential violation, Tokajer said police would do their own investigation to determine if the property owner or agent is in violation of the VRC program and issue a citation, if necessary.