Updated Oct. 20 with final passage
The St. Louis Board of Aldermen has passed the city鈥檚 first-ever restrictions on short-term rentals.
The board voted by a wide margin on Friday to send the regulations to Mayor Tishaura Jones, who plans to sign them in the coming weeks.
鈥淭oday St. Louis finally joined cities across the nation to regulate short term rentals and hold operators accountable to the neighbors where their properties are located,鈥� she said in a statement.
The bills require building owners to get a permit to operate short-term rentals. They also cap the number of units that can be rented out by one person, in an effort to cut down on 鈥済host hotels,鈥� or large, multifamily buildings with absentee owners. Those have been an issue especially in the downtown area.
The legislation also caps the number of units that can be rented out by a person who doesn鈥檛 live in the properties and prohibit stays of fewer than two nights.
The new regulations would take effect as soon as technically possible but no later than a year from the date the bills become law.
Our original story from Oct. 13
The St. Louis Board of Aldermen on Friday moved a step closer to regulating short-term rentals, giving preliminary approval to a bill that would require owners to obtain a permit to operate the properties.
Although Airbnb鈥檚 website alone lists more than 1,000 rental properties in St. Louis, and VRBO lists more than 300, the city has no laws that regulate short-term rentals, said Alderman Bret Narayan of the 4th Ward. The Board of Aldermen has for years attempted and failed to get laws governing such properties passed.
鈥淲e are basically in the Wild West,鈥� said Narayan, who sponsored the bill. 鈥淲hen it comes to any regulations, there's nothing on the books. We're hoping to get something in place so that when there are problematic short-term rentals, we can shut them down.鈥�
The bill also would prohibit stays fewer than two nights to discourage people using rentals to throw big house parties. It would cap the number of units that can be rented by a person who doesn鈥檛 live in their properties, which bill sponsors say will decrease 鈥済host hotels鈥� 鈥� large properties in which the owner isn鈥檛 present.
Short-term rentals have resulted in loud parties and dangerous situations, other aldermen said. Critics have said rentals lead to higher housing prices and complaints from neighbors who say nearby short-term rentals are like hotels.
Fifth Ward Alderman Joe Vollmer, who lives in the Hill neighborhood, says that living in a tourist-heavy area means he has dealt with unwanted visitors who yell, blast music and urinate in the yard.
鈥淚 have one of the wildest in my ward, owned by a company that basically has frat parties every weekend,鈥� he said. 鈥淧eople are in hell. They invested in a single-family home, and yet every weekend they are putting up with basically a nightclub.鈥�
The bill would give city officials the right to revoke a rental owners permit if renters play music too loud or otherwise violate city ordinances. After three violations, the city would automatically pull the owner鈥檚 permit.
Alderwoman Daniela Vela虂zquez of the 6th Ward said residents have not had any recourse when they鈥檝e experienced rowdy short-term rental hosts and guests.
鈥淚t gives people a clear process,鈥� she said of the proposed bill. 鈥淭hey understand what is in violation, what is not. And it also gives peace of mind 鈥� a clear way for people to say 鈥榯his is not working in our neighborhood.鈥欌��
Other members of the board said that short-term rentals shouldn鈥檛 be allowed at all in single-family residential neighborhoods, since they could be classified as a commercial business.
The board approved an amendment to the bill that would require conditional use hearings before permits are given to those who live in single-family residential neighborhoods.
鈥淚 think some of my colleagues think that this legislation was tacitly approving the fact that these exist in the first place,鈥� said Narayan, the bill鈥檚 sponsor. 鈥淏ut I'm a realist. I'm a pragmatist. And the fact of the matter is, they're here. And they're in our neighborhoods. And right now when there's problems, they're not being addressed.鈥�
The bill needs final approval from the board before it would head to Mayor Tishaura Jones.
