Homer draft would limit short-term rentals in four residential zones to operators' homes

A draft zoning code from Homer City Planner Ryan Foster would allow short-term rentals in the Rural Residential, Urban Residential, Neighborhood Flex and Residential Office districts only at the operator's primary permanent residence. The Homer Planning Commission takes up the draft Wednesday.

Commissioners are asked to review and comment on the draft, not vote. The city's short-term rental page says the commission will review the draft again in December and that "no formal adoption date has been scheduled." The Homer City Council has final authority over the zoning code.

The draft covers rentals of less than 30 days with five or fewer units. Motels, hotels, lodges, inns and rentals of 30 days or more are excluded. Outside the four districts, short-term rentals would be allowed wherever homes are allowed.

Existing rentals in the four districts that do not meet the new rule could keep operating until the property changes hands. At that point they would lose their grandfathered status.

Operators would need an annual permit. To renew, they would have to show the rental was active. The council would set the fee by resolution. A permit could not move to another property but would transfer to a new owner, except for the noncompliant rentals in the four districts. Every rental would need a property manager registered with the city.

The draft says the council may set a limit on the number of permits by resolution, and Foster marks that as a question. His memo also asks whether bed and breakfasts should need a permit.

Homer's last attempt to regulate short-term rentals was introduced in November 2023 and failed. On April 13, the council directed the Economic Development Advisory Commission to review the issue and report by Oct. 15.

On Sept. 8, that commission voted 4-2 to recommend the primary-residence limit and 4-2 to end grandfathered status at sale. Chair Marks objected to including the Residential Office district, and Commissioner Jonathon Young was hesitant to proceed without data on the effect on operators and the economy.

The commission's final memo, in the council's Oct. 26 packet, recommends a registration fee of about $50 to $125 and estimates the city's first-year cost at about $32,500. It does not recommend a permit cap or moratorium. It concludes that short-term rentals "affect housing but are not the primary driver of Homer's housing challenges," that the policies are unlikely to have a major effect on housing and seasonal workforce needs, and that they may hurt existing whole-property rentals over the long run.

The memo counts about 451 listings in city limits, including roughly 263 possible whole-house rentals with no operator on site, against 3,071 housing units. The figures come from Young's review of Airbnb advertisements and cover the whole city. Young calls the 263 an upper bound, not a count of homes proven removed from the housing supply.