County proposes changes to STR ordinance

Caps and density limits added

Last week, Riverside County announced a special meeting for its Planning Commission to review revisions to its short-term rental (STR) ordinance (927.1).

Following a winter and spring of public meetings and small group sessions, the Planning Department has prepared a revision to the STR ordinance. This can be found online at https://idyllwildtowncrier.com/2023/08/14/riverside-county-planning-department-short-term-rental-ordinance-revision/.

The Planning Commission’s special meeting is scheduled for 9 a.m. Wednesday, Aug. 23, and will be at the Administration Center board chambers. To provide comments on proposed Ordinance 927.2 prior to the Planning Commission meeting, email [email protected], according to Darin Schemmer, communications director for Supervisor V. Manuel Perez of the 4th District.

The proposed Ordinance 927.2 is 35 pages, an increase of more than 50%. The new language is almost exclusively the result of the Planning Department organizing separate groups of residents and STR owners from Idyllwild and the Wine Country to discuss their unique issues about STR regulation.

That is easily found at the very beginning of the proposed ordinance. Section 1, Findings (a) specifically notes that the increase in STRs has been greater in Idyllwild and the Wine Country.

The proposed ordinance now references a court case (Protect Our Neighborhoods v. City of Palm Springs (2022) 73 Cal.App.5th 667) to justify its intent that STRs are an ancillary and secondary use of residential property and one purpose of the ordinance is to ensure that remains an STR’s purpose.

Not only are there some general changes, such as specifying how many violations in one year (three) or total violations (seven) will result in suspension of an STR certificate or that “responsible guests” may also be subject to receiving a violation, but many of the new sections and provisions specifically address Idyllwild and Wine Country, either together or separately. For example, “caps” and density limitations are being proposed in both communities.

These communities are defined in the ordinance. Idyllwild includes Pine Cove, as designated in the Riverside County Comprehensive General Plan.

Also, the draft identifies three separate Wine Country districts — Winery, Equestrian and Residential — with unique applications of the ordinance. All are specified in the Temecula Valley Wine Country Policy Area, a part of the county’s Comprehensive General Plan.

The draft ordinance provides several reasons for treating these two areas differently than the rest of the unincorporated area of the county. First, it states that number of STRs in these areas far exceeds the concentration in any other area.

Secondly, as a result of this high volume of STRs, the price of housing and the cost to rent is pushed higher. And finally, it notes that Idyllwild is adjacent to a national forest, consequently more attention must be paid to potential evacuations because of wildfires or mudslides.

While some are not happy with the proposed changes, others, such as Joel Feingold, a longtime Idyllwild resident who has frequently spoken to the issues of STRs, recognize that some progress will happen.

“If I think back to day one, a few years ago, when I entered the STR battle so to speak, I believe we did OK,” he wrote in an email. “It appears we will get a cap, even if it’s a bit higher than the town voted for, and yes, density at 150 feet will help to some degree, but those inundated will remain as such … We fought a good fight but greed won out, and many people will continue to suffer in their residential neighborhoods as businesses thrive around them …”

And Jon Brown, also of Idyllwild, noted that the exiting ordinance largely affects existing STR certificate holders, while the proposed 927.2 will have greater effect on STR owners without a certificate.

A cap on the number of STRs in these areas and possible density limitations have been urged for several years. This draft addresses both, as well as a lottery for issuing new STR certificates.

However, the county had to be careful on when these restrictions would be effective and often allowed exemptions for renewals of existing STR certificates.

Cap

Section 10 of the draft ordinance specifically addresses ownership and operation of STRs in Idyllwild.

A cap or limitation on the number of STRs is included in this section. The provision states, “The Short Term Rental Cap for Idyllwild shall be determined by a percentage of the existing single family residential units in Idyllwild, as of the effective date of this ordinance.”

And then it explicitly limits the number of STRs in Idyllwild to 500, or 14% of the current single family residential units in Idyllwild. Once this limit is reached, the county will not issue new STR certificates until the number of approved certificates falls below the limit.

Brown felt this number was reasonable and in line with the number of existing certificates in Idyllwild.

In the Wine Country, the percentage cap is different for the three districts. The cap for the Winery district is 114 STRs, which is equivalent to 15%, for the Equestrian district the cap is eight units or 8%, and in the Residential district, the cap will be 105 STRs or 10.5%.

Density

The next paragraph, Section 10 (e), requires, at least 150 feet between STRs. Any new application for an STR certificate will be denied if that property is within 150 feet of an existing certified STR.

However, if an STR owner, with an existing and certified STR within 150 feet of another certified STR, applies for a renewal of the certificate, the county will make an exception. As long as the owners of these STRs comply with the ordinance, their certificates will continue to be renewed.

Limits on owning STRs

Another new restriction is owners (“Owner, Owner Entity, and any ownership interest, or responsible person for the ownership interest of the Owner or Owner Entity”) may not hold more than two STR certificates in the Idyllwild area. They may have STRs in other unincorporated areas of the county.

If and when the ordinance is passed with this language, existing owners with three or more STRs will be exempt for three years. At that time, any request for renewal of an STR certificate must comply with this limitation.

Lottery or new STR certificates

If the number of STR certificates in Idyllwild or the Wine Country does not exceed the cap, new certificates will be issued. But there will be a priority.

The county will issue an STR certificate first to a property that has been paying a Transient Occupancy Tax (TOT) for the period of Sept. 13, 2021, through Sept. 13, 2022.

These properties are in Tier 1. Brown added that John Hildebrand, planning director, estimated that 17 properties meet this qualification. “They paid TOT but either never had, or did have and accidentally let a permit expire due to not being notified to renew,” according to Brown.

Any other properties seeking an STR certificate, because the cap is not being exceeded, will be eligible for a lottery, which may be held twice a year.

Temporary events

The proposed ordinance prohibits any temporary events, as defined by Ordinance 348, until the responsible operator has received a permit for the event.

Occupancy

The existing occupancy limits of 200 square feet per person still apply. The total number of guests depends on the size of the property. Lots of a half-acre or less will be limited to 10 guests. From a half-acre to 2 acres, the limit is 16 guests. And for properties greater than 2 acres, the maximum occupancy will be 20 guests.

Other

Both owners and guests must comply with the existing Noise Ordinance (847). Noise monitoring systems will continue to be required.

Guests will be required to sign a “Good Neighbor” brochure and acknowledge they reviewed the video.

Enforcement

Regardless of the outcome of potential changes to the STR ordinance, the county is planning to establish stronger enforcement of the ordinance. The recently approved fiscal year 2023-24 county budget provides new funds for both the Sheriff’s Department and Code Enforcement to establish dedicated staff to its enforcement.

There was no change in the level of fines for violations. The initial fine is $1,500 and a second, if within one year, is $3,000 and $5,000 for added violations within the same year.

Future

Mark Dean, president of the Pine Cove Property Owners Association and neighbor to five STRs, intends to continue to urge the board to modify some of the proposed changes. For example, he said, “I believe the density issue is the most important, since it most directly affects the peace and quiet of every resident. The 150 feet between STRs is not what the town wanted (300 feet) but at least it’s something.”

But Dean is not satisfied that existing STRs that violate the density limit can be renewed without limit. “Going forward, I will be working to revise the ordinance before it is finalized to reflect a three-year phase out of STRs that won’t meet the density restrictions using the same language that is being added to reduce the number of STR multiple ownerships to the max number of two each …

“I will continue to fight hard for this as I see it as the linchpin toward improving our STR dilemma,” he promised.

Moratorium

Sept. 9 is when the current moratorium for issuing new STR certificates for Idyllwild and the Wine Country expires. Since the special Planning Commission meeting is Aug. 23, it is unlikely that the new ordinance can be approved before the moratorium’s expiration date. Consequently, according to Felisa Cardona, the Planning Department’s public Information officer, an extension of the moratorium will be requested at the Aug. 29 board of supervisors’ meeting.

“The extension timeframe is tied to when the revised version of Ordinance 927.2 becomes effective,” she wrote in an email to the Town Crier. “Meaning, once the new ordinance is in place and the CAP/limits to STR certificates for Idyllwild and Wine Country are effective, the moratorium is lifted. This however assumes the Board approves these changes.”