ST. CHARLES, Mo. – The St. Charles City Council approved a one-year moratorium Tuesday on new residential permits for short-term rentals.
Whether it be Airbnb or Vrbo, short-term rentals have become the norm nationwide.
“You can stay in the neighborhood and feel like you’re a part of the community,” said Margarita Cultara, a tourist.
“I see a lot of benefits because it’s homey,” said Santina Macdonald, a tourist.
However, in some instances, renters haven’t been good neighbors. According to city officials, St. Charles is not exempt from minor complaints. Now a moratorium is proposed to fix that.
Recent crime and chaos at parties in St. Louis rentals are one more reason advocates urge to slow down in their city.
“I don’t believe there’s any issue with it. It would almost be like targeting Lyft or Uber as problems too with crime,” said Jeff Labranche, a St. Charles resident.
If approved, the one-year moratorium would start on June 17 and pause new applications for residential permits only. This comes after a month-long debate in the summer of 2022 led to an ordinance detailing new regulations that took effect on August 2.
In October, there was also a previous moratorium of 20 days, allowing homeowners the chance to catch up and apply legally.
“I’m undecided whether or not it’s a good thing. I was happy when I saw a few of them, thinking it would bring new people in,” said Kathy, a Frenchtown resident. “Bring money in for Main Street and 2nd Street, but a lot of my other community people are opposed to it; they think it’s devaluing their property.”
Since then, there have been 80 residential permits and another 15 commercial zone permits approved.
“The buffers are really starting to work in terms of the number of applications have slowed down; we’re only seeing a new couple of applications a month,” said Zach Tusinger, director of City of St. Charles Community Development. “We’re working to bring short-term rentals that we’re approved into compliance with inspections, yearly fees, and monitoring.”
For rental advocates, the growth of legal, regulated rentals translates into the growth of the local economy, which is heavily influenced by tourism.
“Things can always get out of hand if you don’t keep a watchful eye on it,” Cultara said. “But people are going to stay in the community; they’re going to spend money in your community at your local restaurants, at your stores.”
No matter where you stand, the possibility of a moratorium will live rent-free in people’s heads.
The resolution now moves to be signed by St. Charles Mayor Dan Borgmeyer.
