PC Meeting 10-15-21

During the public access testimonies, 23 spoke against caps, 13 for caps, and 2 unknown.

HOTR sent a letter with 376 signatories, scroll down to read it!

After debate the commissioners recommended a county-wide cap of 650, with 229 on SJI, 334 on Orcas, 85 on Lopez and 2 for other islands.

650 is the number of active, compliant permits as of July 31, 2021. This effectively means there will be ZERO permits for years to come.

They also considered  giving a 3-5 year mechanism to trigger re-evaluation of the situation after data has been collected. We fully support collecting DATA! This has not yet been done. All of the Findings and Caps have been based only on anecdotal stories.

Next steps: Council will have “3 touches” on the subject, one being a Public Hearing (meaning, we have to do this again). Then they vote in January.

Click below to access the recording of the PC Meeting on 10-15-21.

Planning Commission Meeting 8-20-21

Thank you, Karen Speck, for attending this long meeting, giving public comment,
and putting together the following notes.
Much appreciated!

Today I was a guest/citizen participating in the County Commissioners meeting with the Department of Community Development discussing CAPS on vacation rentals. 8:30am to 4:30pm (though the bulk of the VR discussion was until 12 noon.)

Planning Director Erika Shook reported there are 1,023 VR permits issued, however only 405 are active/compliant. The remaining are either non compliant, in violation, or not active and the Dept is in the process of contacting these owners and either getting them compliant or will begin a revocation process.

After taking public comment in the meeting with, by my tally, 11 persons commenting to place CAPS on VRs, 12 saying no do not, and 5 callers with comments that left me unsure where they stood, the Commissioners voted unanimously to CAP VRs at the current 405 active/in compliance referencing the current (207 Orcas, 136 San Juan Is., 56 Lopez, 6 Outer Islands.)

The Planners will now write up this recommendation, it goes to the County Council (Stephens, Wolf, Minney) and they vote on it and there will be another round of public input. I do not know if the CAPS are approved by the Council - if they start immediately and the moratorium is lifted, or if the moratorium runs its course and then the new law goes into effect.

If you have thought about applying for a VR Permit, and if you are not in the restricted/moratorium areas, now is the time. If I understood Ms Shook correctly, people in the pipeline will not be denied, if they comply otherwise. It would only be those who wish a VR permit, after the CAPS fully pass.

For the LINK to the recording, click below!

Council Meeting 8-10-21

Public Access Comments (2) at 15:00
Valerie Jusela wants all VRs to be suspended until it's been proven that each has at least $1 million of liability insurance

Toby Cooper wants us to be responsible for emergency preparedness items for our guests.

VR Update by Erika Shook at 2:00:42
The PC began working on caps but did not make much progress so will continue at August 20 meeting.

Council Member Cindy Wolf asked how VR regs will be addressed through Comp Plan Revision currently underway. Erika Shook replied that the Comp Plan will only include Goals and Policies that talk about VRs, not actual regulations. The PC will work on regulations after the revision is complete.

Still to be decided: how many permits will be available each year (Caps). The choices:

1- At a lower level than the current number
(translation: good luck ever getting a permit)

2- At the current level
(that means no new permits anywhere in the county until existing permits are given up or removed)

3-A slightly higher level
(there will be a few new permits each year, but the system to get one has not been determined)

SJICN VR Forums

Panelists:

Jamie Stephens, County Council Chair

Doug Whittaker, Confluence Research & Consulting

Jan Scilipoti, in support of VR owners.

Toby Cooper, representing the (anti) Vacation Rental Working Group.

June 9    Discovery (watch recording here)

June 17   Common Ground (watch recording here)

June 24    Collaborative Action ( to be rescheduled)