Editor,
What surprises me most about the debate over short term rentals is that there is any debate at all.
There is not one workable model that can be pointed to as a success. All cities report the same litany of predictable problems. They include increased anti-social behavior, public drunkeness, excessive noise, and property damage, as well as trash and parking issues.
More importantly, they negatively affect property values. Sellers will have to disclose their proximity to short term rentals and all the attendant problems that accompany them. Who in their right mind would willingly live next to a short-term rental?
Neighborhoods by definition are at odds with short-term rentals, which are essentially commercial endeavors. Zoning restrictions alone should have been enough to disallow them.
Our city council must recognize that the most basic tenet of home ownership is the right to the quiet enjoyment of one’s property. It is their obligation to protect that right.
I understand why people want to vacation in Laguna Beach and sympathize with them. They are, after all, the same reasons we choose to live here; reasons worth protecting and preserving.
The assurances that short term rentals will be carefully regulated and monitored imply that they require these constraints. A better solution would be to avoid preventive measures altogether by not allowing short-term rentals in our city.
Thank you to Councilman Rob Zur Schmiede for agreeing with the planning commission’s recommendations.
Michael Hallinan, Laguna Beach
