Washington, not Perez, holds STR meeting in Idyllwild

On Monday, Oct. 3, Riverside County Supervisor Chuck Washington and Charissa Leach, the county’s director of the Transportation and Land Management Agency, headlined a Town Hall meeting geared toward learning local sentiments regarding short-term rentals (STRs) in the Idyllwild-Pine Cove area.

Opening the meeting, Washington asked that civility be maintained by those in attendance, and further emphasized that loud parties are not an emergency so using 911 to report them is not appropriate.

The supervisor related that the Riverside County Board of Supervisors will adopt ordinances regulating STRs in both Idyllwild-Pine Cove and the Temecula Valley Wine Country, the two current hot beds of STR activity in the county. He asked for input from locals in attendance at the meeting in the form of placing stickers on several posters located along the walls of the hall, each of which detailed possible problem areas divided into degrees of concern. The more stickers placed on posters by the more than 100 people in attendance, the more those concerns would be shown to be of importance to local residents.

Leach said this information, along with information from Temecula residents at a similar meeting the following night, will be used to compile data to decide whether to lift a moratorium on new STR certificates. The moratorium, she told the audience, probably will be extended past Oct. 18 as more time is needed to study the information.

Also, anyone who cared to speak via microphone on topic for about two minutes was afforded that opportunity.

Several residents complained of loud noise, trash, parking problems and chimney sparks, among other issues regarding STRs nearby to them. Some called for a requirement that STR property owners live on the premises. Some called for proof of insurance covering rental problems. Others expressed concerns regarding the Hill’s water supply and escape routes in case of fire, particularly regarding renters not familiar with them. One speaker called for 24-hour patrolling to be paid for by STR owners. Another declared “I have a gun, and I know how to use it,” a sentiment Washington quickly discouraged.

Overall, it appeared that those complaining of STRs were most concerned about maintaining “peace and quiet” in their neighborhoods. But some STR owners reported they had received no complaints regarding their STRs. The owner of a vacation rental business in town related that she had received no more than two complaints in some 8,000 rentals.

Marge Muir suggested the county appoint an ombudsman, perhaps stationed in the building on Franklin Drive that had long ago been donated to the county, to help people — including those working locally — who cannot now find a place to live because rental homes have been turned into STRs. That suggestion was labeled a fine idea by Leach and Washington, who said they intended to follow up on it.

Chuck Weisbart of Idyllwild noted that even though he was invited, our other county supervisor, V. Manuel Perez, who will become our only supervisor Jan. 1, was not in attendance. Weisbart thanked Washington for all he’s done. “So our future supervisor did not even show up. That’s a slap in the face to the community of Idyllwild.”

In closing, Washington praised those in attendance for maintaining remarkable civility during the meeting, indicating their concerns and suggestions would be presented to and considered by the supervisors.

Editor Becky Clark contributed to this story.