A referendum is in the works to repeal a new Clatsop County ordinance that made vacation rentals a recognized use in zones throughout unincorporated areas.
The county received a prospective petition on July 1, just over a week after county commissioners unanimously approved changes to the development code and formally allowed vacation rentals in commercial and residential zones.
Vacation rentals have created problems in neighborhoods such as Cove Beach.
Lydia Ely/The Astorian
If the referendum qualifies for the ballot and is approved by voters, vacation rentals of 30 or fewer days would be banned in the county’s unincorporated areas excluding Arch Cape, where vacation rentals have been permitted for almost 20 years.
Vacation rentals would start to be eliminated next year as owners would be unable to renew their permits. More than 170 vacation rentals exist in unincorporated areas, including some that have operated for decades.
The county has estimated based on fiscal year 2021-22 data that phasing out vacation rentals would lead to the loss of about $700,000 in annual lodging tax revenue.
Although the referendum would apply only to unincorporated areas, all county voters could vote on the ballot measure.
The petitioners — Charles Dice and Jeff Davis, of Cove Beach, and Clare Hasler-Lewis, of Surf Pines — have until Aug. 10 to turn in signatures from 4% — or 742 — of county voters to get the referendum on the November ballot. If they want the referendum on the May ballot, the petitioners have until Sept. 20 to turn in signatures, according to the county.
“We are property owners and renters, housing advocates, business owners and retirees from towns and rural areas around Clatsop County,” Dice wrote in a statement for the group North Coast Neighbors United. “We are Republicans, Democrats, independents and everything in between. Above all, we are your neighbors, united in our commitment to protecting our North Coast residential neighborhoods — because neighborhoods are for families, not vacation rental businesses.”
When county commissioners passed the ordinance in June, they directed county staff to create a plan for capping the number of vacation rentals allowed in certain areas. The plan is expected to arrive within the next few weeks.
So while the part of the regulation involving the development code — zoning for rentals — is finished, the part involving the county code — regulating rentals with caps — is not, County Manager Don Bohn said at a work session on Wednesday.
“In some regards, (the petition) seems a little bit premature because we haven’t gone through the entire process yet,” Bohn told commissioners.
The idea of limiting the number of vacation rentals convinced Commissioner Pamela Wev, who had voted against the first reading of the ordinance, to approve the second reading last month.
Vacation rentals are an unsettled issue on the Oregon Coast. The ventures attract tourists and local businesses and local governments enjoy the economic benefits. But critics argue that the behavior of out-of-towners and their impact on the environment degrades the quality of life in some neighborhoods.
Lincoln County voters passed a ballot measure last year to phase out vacation rentals in unincorporated residential zones over five years. A challenge to the measure is under review by the state Land Use Board of Appeals.
Where Lincoln County’s situation involves a voter initiative proposing a new ordinance, in Clatsop County, the prospective petition, if it lands on the ballot, would repeal an existing ordinance, Joanna Lyons-Antley, the county counsel, clarified on Wednesday.
The recent moves around vacation rentals in Clatsop County come after about two dozen public meetings on the issue over three years. The discussion began in late 2019, when Cove Beach residents raised concerns about neighborhood livability. About a third of the dwellings in that neighborhood are vacation rentals.
In April, county commissioners voted to amend the operating standards for vacation rentals outside of Arch Cape. The updated standards, contained in the county code, banned permit transfers, shortened permit length, created rules around occupancy and required that rental owners post good-neighbor flyers that address parking, speed limits, quiet hours and other conduct-based concerns.
Since a moratorium was first imposed last summer, the county hasn’t issued any new vacation rental permits, giving the county time to figure out how to regulate the controversial enterprises. The twice-extended freeze is set to expire in late August.
That residents in Astoria, Warrenton, Gearhart, Seaside and Cannon Beach, which have their own vacation rental rules, could vote on an issue that affects only unincorporated areas may cause confusion. Commissioner Lianne Thompson said on Wednesday that communication on this point could be challenging.
Bohn reminded the commission that the process had just begun. “The good news, I guess, if you want to see it, is that we do have time,” he said.
