Woodstock boards approve short-term rental cap

By LIZ SAUCHELLI

Valley News Staff Writer

Published: 05-02-2024 8:00 PM

WOODSTOCK — The Selectboard and Village Board of Trustees have approved an ordinance that caps the number of short-term rentals in Woodstock.

The new ordinance — which is scheduled to go into effect July 1 — puts a limit on the number of short-term rentals in town at 55 for owner-occupied rentals, where the owner lives on the property, and another 55 for non-owner occupied, meaning the owner does not live on the property full time.

The ordinance defines a short-term rental as a “furnished house, condominium, other dwelling unit, or sleeping space of a dwelling unit,” that is rented out for fewer than 30 consecutive days, but more than 14 days per year. Those who rent out their homes for fewer than 14 days would not have to apply for a permit or be included in the cap.

Both boards approved the ordinance in 4-0 votes on Thursday morning. Selectboard Vice Chairwoman Susan Ford was absent and Trustee Brenda Blakeman, who operates two short-term rentals, recused herself.

“The plan is to revisit this in a year, like with a lot of policies and understand if this is working or not working,” Selectboard member Laura Powell said during a Wednesday night meeting before the vote.

The ordinance, initially proposed by the town’s Planning Board, passed Thursday morning after more than a year of consideration and public feedback. Among its stated goals are to “preserve Woodstock’s sense of place” in addition to insuring public safety for homeowners and visitors alike, in addition to promoting “the conversion of short-term housing to long-term housing.”

The new ordinance replaces two separate permit processes for the town and village. The town’s permit requirement has been in effect since 2002 and the village’s since 2005.

Both include limits on the number of days a short-term rental can be rented out for, but do not limit the number of short-term rentals that can be operated (however, there has been a moratorium on permits for the town since 2022).

Article continues after...

Yesterday's Most Read Articles

Under the new ordinance, the cap on days has been removed in favor of a cap on the number of rentals.

The two boards also approved a short-term rental fee structure Thursday morning. The fees include a $500 base fee for owner-occupied short-term rentals and a $1,000 base fee for non-owner occupied short-term rentals.

Additionally, both groups would have to pay occupancy fees depending on how many people their rentals can house at any given time, which range from $250 for one to four occupants; $1,000 for five to eight, and $2,000 for nine and above.

The fees are not attached to the ordinance and instead will be reviewed after a year and adjusted if the boards deem it necessary.

The town will begin publishing information about how to apply for permits, as well as the fee structure, in the coming weeks, Steven Bauer, Woodstock’s director of planning and zoning, said in a phone interview Thursday.

Short-term rental owners can then start applying for permits, which would officially take effect Jan. 1, 2025, and run through the end of the calendar year.

Each year, the permit and associated fees would have to be renewed.

Short-term rental owners who do not comply with the new ordinance would face fines that start at $500.

There are currently 25 owner-occupied short-term rental permit holders and 45 non-owner occupied short-term rental permit holders, according to information provided by Bauer. Additionally, there are an estimated 14 to 21 short-term rental owners, known as “pre-existing rural operators,” in the Forest Reserve and the Residential Five Acre zoning districts do not need permits.

Under the new ordinance, those STR owners would have to get a permit, but their rentals would not count against the 110 cap.

During peak season, like foliage, Bauer said advertisements for short-term rentals in Woodstock can top 200.

Residents who spoke at a meeting Wednesday night and Thursday morning expressed opposing views. Mary McCuaig, who lives in South Woodstock and operates a short-term rental, urged the boards to vote it down.

“It looks like a big government, big brother move and it’s not the Vermont way,” she said during Wednesday night’s meeting.

McCuaig said she operates her short-term rental in the summer and fall and that her gross income from the rental is roughly $6,000 per year. The new fees, she said, would take away 22% of that income.

“We pay some of the highest taxes in the state of Vermont and to help pay our taxes we are providing (…) housing to visitors that come and enjoy and spend money in our town,” she said. “We should not have to pay an annual fee which translates into another tax. This is a slap in the face to us.”

Mon Vert Cafe owner Sam DiNatale urged the boards to pass the ordinance, in part to help with Woodstock’s housing challenges. She said she is currently renting three different places for cafe employees “to be able to live in the area and work in the area,” DiNatale said during Wednesday night’s meeting. While visitors to Woodstock help support her Central Street business, she also has heard complaints that there are not enough places to eat in town.

“The reason you will ask any of the restaurants in town as to why they are not open more (…) is because they don’t have enough staff to be open,” she said. “And the reason we don’t have enough staff is there’s no housing for them to stay.”

While she said she does not expect the ordinance to add more housing, it would help address her concerns about people buying property in town to operate them as short-term rentals.

“My hope is that this ordinance is going to stop the issue from getting worse,” DiNatale said.

Wendy Marrinan, a Woodstock resident who does not own an short-term rental, but lives near one, urged the boards to postpone their vote and continue to study the topic.

She noted that the town now has software that will gather data on short-term rentals and that the boards should see what they learn from it before making a decision.

“I’m also in favor of hitting the pause button and working with what we’ve got and (…) gathering this data,” Marrinan said during Wednesday’s meeting. “I think we’re adding too many new pieces all at once.”

Under Vermont law, Woodstock residents who oppose the ordinance can petition for a town-wide vote. If they are successful, a special town meeting would be scheduled to either uphold or discard the ordinance.

Earlier this year, Fairlee residents voted to uphold the town’s new short-term rental ordinance and voters in Stowe, Vt., did the same this week.

Liz Sauchelli can be reached at esauchelli@vnews.com or 603-727-3221.