SURPRISING STUFF
Short-term rentals have been a huge issue and topic at Lake Geneva city meetings.
The residents near vacation rentals have spoken openly about the frustration these rentals have caused. The rentals have turned quiet, safe, and family-friendly neighborhoods into chaos (at times) and have many of the residents where they are located stressed, what with the unknowns that occur from one renter to the next. The city has been asked repeatedly to stop people from coming to the city and to drastically increase regulations. There are state laws that the city has to follow, however, and at last week’s plan commission meeting these state laws were confirmed.
As much as the citizens of Lake Geneva would like a moratorium on vacation rentals the city cannot accommodate this due to state law. The city is allowed to enforce some rules and regulations. The city is in the process of rewriting its short-term rental ordinance which will include quarterly reports from the rentals about their operations. Failure to submit the required reports will be considered a violation and will be subject to penalties and possible revocation of short-term rental licenses. Residents who live near any short-term rentals need to help with enforcement and if there is a legitimate complaint of safety or public disturbance the neighbors need to call the police.
As of right now, the number of police reports regarding short-term rentals in residential neighborhoods is extremely minimal. If the city is to help the citizens with the issues brought to them by the citizens, there needs to be documented proof of an issue. If a short-term rental has too many calls of public nuisance, noise issues, and or safety concerns it could have its license taken. There have been comments regarding the number of short-term rentals in the city, some stating that there are close to three hundred. These are listed on different sites such as VRBO, Air B&B, and others, and commercial rentals, which include the hotels and vacation rentals offered by resorts such as the Cove.
According to the Lake Geneva Building and Zoning Department, there are seventy-eight short-term rentals registered in the city and the city has become more aware of and is being more diligent in the monitoring of them. There were a lot of unhappy residents at the end of last week’s meeting. They did not like what they felt was minimal help from city officials regarding their neighborhoods and the quality of life that they expressed was being taken from them. City officials believe their hands are tied and can only legally do so much. The short-term rental ordinance is still being tweaked and the city is still looking for ways to somewhat control these rentals and still be in compliance with state law.
This is just the beginning of the city’s attempt at making short-term rentals and residents of Lake Geneva live comfortably together. City officials may be looking at working with professionals and software to find ways to make short-term rentals easier to monitor, regulate, and enforce. Tax considerations can also be applied to make short-term rentals less profitable for all involved. If only a few profit from a neighborhood ‘blight’ of these rentals, then something has to be done. The software offer was kicked to the FLR committee at the council meeting on Monday night. No decision.
