Municipalities across P.E.I. grapple with short-term rental regulations

Now that Charlottetown has approved regulations for short-term rentals, some other communities in Prince Edward Island are looking at the issue as well, but no municipalities are expected to make any big rule changes soon. 

Those changes to Charlottetown's zoning and development rules mean that any short-term rental must be a primary residence. Owners will not be allowed to have multiple properties, and apartments will not be allowed. 

Cornwall and Stratford are neighbouring communities to Charlottetown, and their councils will be looking into what's needed. 

"I would like to see some sort of policy or bylaw or resolution come forward," said Jill MacIsaac, the chair of planning for Cornwall.

She said she has heard complaints from residents about parking and noise at short-term rental properties. She said council will consider how short-term rentals affect residents with neighbouring properties.

"What does that look like for a resident in that neighbourhood?" she said.

She said if someone is renting their property to visitors, tax brackets should be considered too. 

"Somebody else next door may be paying the same amount of tax, but making an income on that property," she said. 

She said Cornwall is short of all types of housing, and expects council to be discussing the issue for many months. 

Stratford waiting on resident survey

Stratford has included a question on short-term rentals in its annual resident survey. The survey asks residents if they would support Stratford regulating STRs. 

"We're watching with great interest how Charlottetown is proceeding and we're learning from that," said Mayor Steve Ogden.

Ogden said council will base any decisions on responses from residents. 

He said he's only had a few complaints about short-term rentals and council is still waiting to determine if regulating them should be a priority. He said the town is just at the initial stage of seeking public input. 

"It's a source of income for people, but neighbourhoods are sometimes not designed for what's basically a hotel operating in their area," he said.

"It's a very complex issue," he noted.

'A non-issue': Summerside, Three Rivers

Summerside Coun. Carrie Adams, who is also on the planning committee, said council doesn't see short-term rentals as an issue. 

"We are not seeing short-term rentals having an impact in our city at the moment," she said. 

Summerside council reviewed the issue of STRs last year, but Adams said its hasn't received any complaints, so there are no plans for the city to regulate.  

Three Rivers Mayor Ed MacAulay said he knows there are homeowners who offer their homes for rent on platforms like Airbnb or VRBO, but it hasn't been a problem. 

"The short-term rentals don't block our housing like they do in the larger centres," he said.

MacAulay said short-term rentals have been discussed at council and the issue will likely be monitored.

He believes more housing is the answer to the area's housing shortage, as opposed to regulation of short-term rentals.  

STRs 'longtime fixture' in Cavendish area

Matthew Jelley is the mayor of the Resort Municipality, which includes Cavendish and other nearby communities along the well-known North Shore which is popular with tourists. 

"In Cavendish's case, short-term rentals have been a longtime fixture," said Jelley. "It supports our goal of having more housing in the community."

Any unregulated business needs regulation.— Connor Kelly

Jelley said each community has to address STR regulation in its own way, but as a vacation destination area he said the resort municipality is in a different scenario. 

The municipality does regulate STRs through "change of use" applications, if someone wants to turn their home or cottage into a rental. 

"Vacation homes, rental homes, second homes have always been a part of the community," he said. "There's no plan to create an owner-occupied requirement." 

He said it can sometimes help bring owners back to the area to live long-term, when they retire and turn their short-term rental into a full-time home. 

Rules needed in all communities: Advocate

Connor Kelly is the tenant network co-ordinator with the P.E.I Fight for Affordable Housing and Cooper Institute.

He would like to see other communities in P.E.I. adopt rules similar to Charlottetown's, including the stipulation that short-term rentals be owner-occupied. 

He said communities should be seeking input from residents on the issue and not just assume it's not a problem because they haven't received complaints. 

"I wouldn't be surprised if it's an issue in Summerside, in Cornwall and Stratford," Kelly said. "Any unregulated business needs regulation."