By ETHAN SHOREY
NORTH PROVIDENCE – Town officials will meet this week as they look to decide what, if any, restrictions should be placed on homes used as Airbnb rentals.
The issue goes back years, but is only now coming up for a full discussion, according to Town Council Ordinance Subcommittee Chairperson Nicholas Feola.
He told The Local Insider that members will be looking to decide if they want such rentals in town or not, including how they might minimize or expand.
“It’s a touchy subject,” he said, adding that many like having such units in town because of the opportunity for owners to make money.
If it’s going to put money in people’s pocket, said Feola, he’s for it, but if the town is going to allow it, he also wants to see rules set in place.
“For some people, I think they accept any money to come in their town,” he said, but local officials want to consider impacts to the wider community as well, including tightening up ordinances on excessive noise or misconduct.
Planning Director Brent Wiegand, who was tasked two years ago with researching what other communities do on this topic, said the information he found has been sitting in a desk file since then.
Wiegand said he found two themes in his research: Many communities banning Airbnbs entirely, or if they’re allowing, they’re requiring that they be established by special use permit under short-term rentals. The rules elsewhere all encompass existing homes as well, he said, not just new construction, and there is generally no grandfathering in of the use from past practice.
The director said he likes the idea of special use permit approvals, as it gives the town more control, including on where the units might be located and how they might be designed.
Airbnb is an online marketplace connecting travelers with local property owners who have available short-term housing.
Two years ago, Councilor Mario Martone brought up the issue after hearing about complaint calls in various neighborhoods about renters behaving without regard for neighbors. The council at the time forwarded the matter to the Ordinance Subcommittee for more research and to gather some ideas.
Currently in town, boarding houses need special use permissions. The town’s only restrictions tied to short-term rentals relate to the lodging and guest house use code in the zoning ordinance, which prohibits the use in all zones. Such homes are defined as being devoted to the leasing of three or more rooms or suites. If a current Airbnb doesn’t fit that description, says Wiegand, it is essentially allowed in town because there are no regulations on them.
