KENORA — City council is considering options for regulating short-term rental accommodations.
A report asking council to consider it was presented at a committee of the whole meeting on Wednesday, with city planner Kevan Sumner saying it was an emerging issue administration thought should go to council for direction.
Sumner said research for the report showed in 2022 there were at least 84 short term rentals operating in Kenora.
The report noted the average occupancy rate was 71 per cent, with an average monthly revenue of $2,382 per month. The peak month was July, with 93 percent occupancy and $4,000 in revenue.
“And those are the ones that were able to be identified through the data screening service,” he said. “Right now, they're operating here in Kenora … in what we consider to be sort of a jurisdictional grey area.”
He said many municipalities are wrestling with what to do with short-term rentals made popular by websites such as Airbnb. He added his department is getting an increasing number of inquiries and comments about them.
“There's not a really a magical or agreed upon best practice for it,” he said. “There are certain types of short term rentals, like the traditional bed and breakfast that are accounted for under our current regulations. But the actual rental of full dwelling units is something that it's not a permitted use under our zoning by-law.”
Sumner said the research gave them some insight into how many are operating and how spread out they are through the community, but there were still surprises.
“To be honest that they showed up in some areas, especially the Harbourtown Centre where we didn't anticipate the numbers to show up that did,” he said. “So we've taken a step back and — instead of going straight to a solution — taken a more measured approach, where we're recommending an approach that would be staged starting with the community consultation.”
Coun. Robert Bernie said if the city moves forward with this, it has to be prepared and acknowledge the fact there may be enforcement implications here down the road.
Associate planner Alberic Marginet said other jurisdictions have indicated that public consultation will help reduce the need for future enforcement.
Coun. Lisa Moncrief said a community consultation process could also be could be an educational opportunity.
“It's possible that people are doing this without consideration for their insurance amounts. The last thing we want to do is encourage people to operate a business that invites people and creates this increased liability and risk that they're not covered for,” she said. “It could be an opportunity to encourage them to do it properly.”
Chief administration officer Kyle Attanasio clarified nobody is doing anything wrong and the current situation was created by a gap in technological advancement.
He said while short-term rentals aren’t permitted, they also aren’t prohibited.
“I just want to move away from any notion that the rules aren't being followed now because that's not the case,” he said. “So I just want to clarify that the choice that's in front of council is whether or not they want to move away from the status quo.”
Attanasio said it will be council’s decision to determine whether the city should get into the regulation business or not, and he said administration felt the consultation process was the best place to start.
The report will be presented for a vote at the next city council meeting on April 19.
