Appeals send both Woodland Subdivision short-term rental permits to Kenai City Council

Kenai received appeals Thursday of both short-term rental permits its Planning and Zoning Commission approved Oct. 14 in Woodland Subdivision, sending the homes on Ash Avenue and Walnut Avenue to the City Council.

The appeals arrived on the last day of the 15-day appeal window. City Clerk Shellie Saner's memos to Mayor Knackstedt and the council do not name the appellants or state their grounds, and the appeals themselves are not posted. The records do not say whether either rental may operate while the appeals are pending.

The council will set hearing dates at its meeting Wednesday, Nov. 4. Under the clerk's memos, the earliest possible hearing is Saturday, Nov. 21. The 45-day limit falls on Monday, Dec. 14. If the council finds good cause, the limit stretches to 60 days, or Monday, Dec. 28.

Under city code, council members will sit as the Board of Adjustment and must be present in person to vote. The board can reverse, remand, affirm or modify each permit. It must issue a written decision within 30 days after the hearing that records each member's vote.

To appeal, a person must be aggrieved and must have been a party of record, meaning they commented orally or in writing at the commission's hearing. Aggrieved covers the applicant or property owner, the city's administrative official, or a nearby owner or legal occupant who shows the decision could hurt their use, enjoyment or property value.

As Alaska News reported Oct. 14, the Ash Avenue permit, sought by Stephanie Lenzini-LeBaron and Bryce LeBaron, passed 3-2. Commissioner Woodard abstained because she lives in the neighborhood, and Vice Chair Douthit was absent, according to the meeting minutes. Neighbors who opposed it cited the neighborhood's single-family character, parking and traffic, enforcement of house rules and the precedent it could set. Resident Mary LeFebvre wrote to the commission asking, "what's to stop others from doing the same." Lenzini-LeBaron said long-term tenants had damaged the house. City staff said there were no permitted short-term rentals on Ash Avenue or in Woodland Subdivision Part 1, though some exist elsewhere in the greater subdivision.

The Walnut Avenue permit, sought by Derek Fowler, passed 5-0 after a motion to cap rentals at 75 days a year failed 2-3. Derek and Sheila Fowler said the house is his primary residence, rented mostly to families and temporary workers while he is away.

Both permits carry the same eight conditions, including a limit of six guests, quiet hours from 10 pm to 7 am, an annual activity report due Dec. 31, a fire inspection every two years and on-site inspections at city staff's request.