The city council unanimously passed a resolution at last night’s council meeting supporting Measure B based on more than 1,800 neighbor complaints related to short-term vacation rentals (STVRs) and complaint data presented by Police Chief Crum and Code Compliance Manager Molina.
More than 60% of the 761 complaints compiled by the city’s code compliance department were noise and loud music complaints coming from short-term vacation rentals, most often from late night parties. Other complaints included excessive trash visible to neighbors, automobiles parking on sidewalks and blocking passage, as well as operating a short-term vacation rental during COVID-19 restrictions.
Police Chief Crum provided a report showing 809 calls for service between October 1, 2019 and November 30, 2020 related to short-term vacation rentals. Most calls to the police department were related to disruptive, and in some cases, illegal behavior by STVR guests including loud, late night parties, crowds coming in and out of residential neighborhoods and increased criminal activity. Fifteen of those complaints resulted in Part 1 Crimes that must be reported as part of Uniformed Crime Report administered by Federal Bureau of Investigations. They included cases of attempted murder, sexual assault, assault, residential burglaries, commercial burglaries and stolen vehicles.
You can view the presentation by the two city departments and their data at: https://www.cathedralcity.gov/home/showpublisheddocument?id=10069
Back on September 9, 2020, Ordinance 842 was unanimously passed by the city council to phase-out short-term vacation rentals (29-day rentals or less) in residential neighborhoods by the end of December 2022 – except where they are permitted by a Homeowners’ Association. Ordinance 842 would also allow without neighbor approval the ability for any residential property to Home Share any room or casita on a short-term basis if the property owner is on-site during the entire rental. Additionally, City ordinances allow for long term rentals (30 days or more) for any residential home, which is attractive to snowbirds that flock to the Valley from October to May each year.
At last night’s council meeting, a resolution was unanimously passed by the City Council reaffirmed its decision to pass Ordinance 842 and to support Measure B which will be on the March 2, 2021 Special Election ballot. The resolution states, “The City Council finds that approval of Measure B is in the best interests of the residents of Cathedral City and will remedy the negative impacts STVRs have on the quality of life in the City, including but not limited to noise, trash, parking and maintenance issues, crime and demand on public safety services, and negative impacts to affordable housing stock.”
To read the resolution in support of Measure B, go to: https://www.cathedralcity.gov/home/showpublisheddocument?id=10067
To find out more about Measure B that will appear as the only ballot item by a vote of Cathedral City residents on March 2, 2021, then go to: https://www.cathedralcity.gov/government/measure-b
