John Jacobs
Apr 20, 2022, 7:37:31 PM
Today I attended the Riverside County Planning Commission meeting
regarding public commentary on Ordinance 927.1 intended to regulate
Short Term Rental activity throughout the unincorporated areas of
Riverside County. Here are a few impressions I gained from the meeting.
The meeting started at 9 am, and as I learned from one of the
administrators, a typical meeting will have perhaps 10-12 persons making
comments. This meeting had over 50- a testament to the significance of
the issue- many were physically present at the meeting, but the great
majority appeared remotely via Zoom or voice call. In the meeting room,
there were several familiar faces from the Idyllwild area, though there
was a fair balance between those speaking regarding Idyllwild-Pine Cove,
and other unincorporated areas- the Temecula wine country contingent was
quite strong. I attended the meeting until about noon- most of the
persons present spoke before that time, and those who attended remotely
spoke in the afternoon- so I don’t have an impression of the Idyllwild
representation was in the afternoon.
The general tone of this meeting was far more rational than the Town
Hall meeting that occurred regarding this issue last fall- individuals
were allotted 2 minutes each (though it was possible to cede one’s time
to another person, if they were physically present). Apparently, over
2300 pages of comments were received regarding this issue, and the
overwhelming majority were from the Idyllwild-Pine Cove area.
I made my own comments known, and came to learn just how short 2 minutes
really is on such a complex issue!
Ordinance 927.1 is not finalized at this point in time, though it seems
a fait accompli- following this meeting, the Planning Commission will
review the comments and may make revisions before submitting it to the
Supervisors for final approval. This ordinance has undergone several
revisions- here are some of the more contested elements, and where they
currently stand:
*Signage specifying a home as a Short Term Rental will be required,
however it sounds unlikely that the phone number of the owner will be
posted on this sign (numerous persons object to this for security
reasons related to building and their own personal security.
*Noise monitors (inside and outside the building) will be required to
monitor excessive noise.
*A property with an ‘Accessory Dwelling Unit’ (ADU) may only use the
primary residence as the STR- the ADU is not eligible (though the
property owner could live in the ADU, and rent the primary residence).
*A minimum 2 night stay will be required. This is contentious on both
sides of the issue- it is intended to reduce the tendency to rent for a
short term party, however some STR owners point out that many quiet,
legitimate renters can only feasibly rent for one night (PCT hikers in
Idyllwild are a primary example).
*Occupancy maximums will be based on the number of official bedrooms in
a home (according to California Building Code)- 2 persons per bedroom,
plus one additional person. Thus, a 3 bedroom home can have a maximum of
7 persons. All parking must be onsite, and not on the street or anywhere
offsite. Use above this will require official exemptions from the County.
There are many more facets to this issue than these select few- for
brevity, these are the issues that have gained most attention. If anyone
else in our Neighborhood Watch Program attended this meeting in any
capacity, it would be interesting to hear other perspectives on their
impressions.
_________________________________
John Jacobs
Pine Crest – Riverside County Playground Rd. Neighborhood Watch
Idyllwild, California 92549
888-522-9001
www.pinecrestwatch.org
Dan Papaila
Thanks for the update John.
Dan & Dawn Papaila
John Jacobs
Apr 26, 2022, 11:28:27 AM
to pc-rcpr-neighborhood-watch-info@googlegroups.com
Ordinance 927.1 is in the final stages of development before it is
submitted to the Board of Supervisors for final approval, however
comments are still being accepted for possible modifications. You can
find the latest version of this ordinance here:
https://planning.rctlma.org/Advance-Planning/348UPD
If you have thoughts or comments on this important issue related to the
quality of life in our neighborhood and the Idyllwild area as a whole,
they can be submitted here:
Riverside County Planning Department
plan…@rivco.org
Steve Jones, Principal Planner
(951)955-0314
sjo…@rivco.org
_________________________________
John Jacobs
Pine Crest – Riverside County Playground Rd. Neighborhood Watch
Idyllwild, California 92549
888-522-9001
www.pinecrestwatch.org
Dan Papaila wrote on 4/21/22 7:06 AM:
John Jacobs
May 19, 2022, 10:49:48 AM
to Pine Crest Neighborhood Watch
Yesterday, I attended the second Riverside County Planning Commission meeting regarding Ordinance 927- since the last meeting on April 20, the Commission considered the wide range of comments that were made at that meeting, and via various correspondence that has been received, and made several adjustments to the Ordinance. This meeting was intended as a means to provide another opportunity to provide commentary on these new adjustments. The meeting had a similar level of attendance as the last one, with a very strong presence of those from the Temecula wine country area, and comments were made by some in attendance, and (many) others via Zoom.
Among the adjustments: the minimum stay in a registered Short Term Rental was reduced to one night. There are varying views of the impacts of this- many from areas like the wine country feel a minimum two night stay will encourage people to visit the area to drink wine then drive home because they don’t want to stay two nights. Others feel that a one night stay encourages ‘Party Houses’.
Noise monitors will be required both on the interior and exterior of the buildings. These devices only monitor noise levels, and not conversation. Exceeding noise levels will be part of the criteria for fines towards the property owner.
Occupancy levels will remain the same- 2 persons per bedroom, plus one extra person, up to a maximum of 10 persons. Large properties (minimum of 5 acres) can have up to 16, but require approval.
All parking must be onsite, and not on street or offsite. This parking capacity requirement is part of the criteria for being registered.
There is consideration for a cap on the total number of STR’s, but the County is grappling with how to set these criteria. My sense is that the Commission is open to the idea, but the devil is in the details about how to do it. There is an intent to get this Ordinance in effect soon, and then revisit the concept of a cap in a ‘Phase 2’.
Once the Commission has completed its work on the Ordinance, it goes to the County Supervisors for approval, and will be implemented.
My personal view of this process has been that the Commission is genuine in seeing that STR’s are a problem that need clear management, and that they are doing due diligence to find a management solution. It is also an incredibly difficult issue to create a management ordinance around, with many facets (and impassioned people!) that are in direct conflict with each other. The resulting ordinance is not going to make anyone 100% happy, and there will still be lots of frustrated people, for very differing reasons. I have come away from this experience more empathetic for those who are trying to work through it, those who have differing conditions from my own (and therefore views of the ordinance), and a clear reinforcement of my longstanding intent to *never* become involved in politics like this!
_________________________________
John Jacobs
Pine Crest – Riverside County Playground Rd. Neighborhood Watch
Idyllwild, California 92549
888-522-9001
www.pinecrestwatch.org
