6 June 22 - 28, 2023 dallasobserver.com DALLAS OBSERVER Classified | MusiC | dish | Culture | unfair Park | Contents The coalition has spearheaded the efforts against Airbnb, VRBO and other platforms that rent houses for fewer than 30 days at a time. Its members say they’ve had to endure problems from extra trash, overflowing parking, an increase in crime, noise and more from houses that operate as short- term rentals instead of typical single-family homes. With the vote to bar short-term rentals from residential neighborhoods, the city says it will begin enforcing the new zoning in six months. Rentals will still be allowed in some commercial and multi-family residen- tial zones, although such areas make up a tiny percentage of the Dallas map. Current short-term rental operators will need to quickly look into options such as turning their properties into traditional long-term rental units or even selling the property out- right. Arlington and Fort Worth have recently enacted similar bans as well, although it’s too early to know whether the move has succeeded, and both of those cities have far fewer STR properties than Dallas. Plano re- cently voted to temporarily ban new short- term rentals from operating following high-profile incidents involving shootings and prostitution in residential neighbor- hoods. Grapevine, a fraction of the size of Dallas but a popular destination for tourism and family attractions, passed an ordinance in 2018 strictly prohibiting short-term rentals from operating within the city limits. That measure is being fought in court by a home- owner plaintiff who claims their rights as a property owner are being violated. Houston, San Antonio and Austin each have varying degrees of similar regulation in place, but nothing resembling the restric- tions Dallas now offers. That’s not to suggest those cities haven’t had their share of party house problems, because they certainly have. During the recently completed Legis- lative session, House Bill 2665, aimed to limit local government’s power to regulate short-term rentals, made some progress be- fore being tabled. Outside of Texas, more regulation has been instituted in the largest cities, with New York City mandating that the owner of a short-term rental property must stay in the rental with the guests at the same time. Los Angeles requires a short-term rental to be the primary residence of its owner, and Chi- cago requires a two-night minimum reser- vation. But Dallas is the largest city in the U.S. to put this sort of wide-sweeping re- striction into place, skipping any sort of reg- ulation altogether. “We are relieved and grateful that the council finally took action to protect homes and neighborhoods and residential zoning in Dallas,” Olive Talley of the Dallas Neigh- borhood Coalition told the Observer the day after the vote. There’s no mistaking the June 14 council vote was a victory for the Dallas Neighbor- hood Coalition and those who share its view, but there’s still a long way to go before Dal- las residential neighborhoods are genuinely free of short-term rentals, if that’s even a re- alistic possibility. “We have legal counsel on retainer, and we’re going to be talking about next steps immediately,” Lisa Sievers, a Dallas Airbnb host and a board member of the Dallas Short-Term Rental Alliance, told the Observer. “Overnight, Dallas has be- come the poster child for local govern- mental overreach in Texas. Thousands of entrepreneurs have been put out of busi- ness, and now millions of enforcement dollars have been transferred onto the backs of taxpayers.” In a statement sent to the Observer, Luis Briones, public policy manager for Airbnb, said, “Airbnb and our Host com- munity have actively engaged with the City of Dallas in its years-long process to advocate for fair short-term rental rules, and we are disappointed by the City Coun- cil’s vote that will prevent responsible res- idents from sharing their home to supplement their income.” S hort-term rental proponents have ad- vocated for giving at least some regu- lation a shot before completely closing down residential rentals. They say that they provide value to the community by employing people to help maintain the properties and by sending guests to local outlets for food, supplies and recreation. And as home- and business-owners, they believe their rights are being violated by a ban. A large number of Dallas short-term rentals are owned by a small number of companies, including some from out of town, but there are still many properties in Dallas owned by independent hosts who live here. This zoning will take away livelihoods for many, plenty of Airbnb hosts have told the City Council. “There have been no rules,” Siever said following an eventful City Council briefing on June 7, a week before the decisive vote. “There have been no regulations. There’s been nothing, and that has made it so that no one can enforce anything. If there would’ve been an ordinance in place to address some of this three or four years ago, we would probably not be having the problems we are having right now.” But such a notion has, more or less, al- ways been a non-starter for those opposed to short-term rentals in neighborhoods. They believe that it all comes down to the question of zoning, not compromise, so the perceived middle ground of regula- tions doesn’t really apply. If a building should be zoned as a hotel, it doesn’t be- long near homes, they say, regardless of any additional rules that might be applied by the city. To Talley, that’s almost all true. Zoning is the right move, she said, but the amount of disruption from short-term rentals has pre- sented a problem that needs addressing, re- gardless of possible zoning matters. “The number of 911 calls, the number of 311 calls, the number of shootings, these types of incidents happening with STRs are certainly the reason why we are trying to stand strong on zoning,” she said before the June 14 vote. “If every STR in the city was an angel and there were no problems, we wouldn’t be having this fight.” None of the owners we spoke to or that we watched speak to the City Council dis- counted the misery that a party house can bring to its neighbors. Sievers has served on three city short-term rental task forces and has heard the horror stories. She agrees the bad actors who allow party houses to wreak havoc should be held ac- countable. But she said she’s not one of those, nor are many other owners in Dallas, and it is rare for people to hear about non-party houses because they act as good neighbors. Similar to how both sides agree that party houses are a blight, both sides agree that the vast majority of rentals are not problem spots. “Party houses are what makes the news,” Sievers said. “What doesn’t make the news is how a friend of mine has a short-term rental that’s next to a woman taking care of her elderly mother. The el- derly mother’s sister rented my friend’s short-term rental so she could be right next door while her sister was dying. Right now, I’ve got a girl staying in one of my short- term rentals that’s here for a 10-week in- ternship. She’s on a budget and she can’t afford a hotel for 10 weeks. People don’t hear those stories.” T he name of the plan endorsed by the Dallas Neighborhood Coalition is the “Keep it Simple Solution” (KISS). And on the surface, it is simple. Call short-term rentals “hotels,” then forbid those hotels from operating in residential neighborhoods. But many rental opponents say that party houses aren’t the only reason they want the rentals barred from residential neighbor- hoods. They say short-term rentals decrease the amount of affordable housing in a city and might lower the property value of the homes around them. Like just about any other hot-button is- sue, there’s a study, report or statistic to sup- port your viewpoint. However, there’s beginning to be more data that suggests short-term rentals, while a unique service, aren’t terribly beneficial to a community’s overall health. That cities like Dallas are fi- nally putting restrictions into place as other cities beef up their own regulations and re- strictions is another sign that the rentals have harmful, unintended effects. According to the city, more than 1,700 short-term rentals were registered in Dal- las as of March. Some estimates suggest that possibly a few thousand more are op- erating in the city unregistered. Those who register are also required to Tim Boole Members of the Dallas Neighborhood Coalition attend a City Hall briefing. Unfair Park from p4 >> p8
