At the June 20, 2023 Regular Council meeting, Council adopted a new By-law to License, Regulate and Govern Short-Term Rental Accommodation Businesses in the City of Kawartha Lakes and approved a soft rollout for a licensing program.
Officials say the new program and By-law will allow the municipality to respond to concerns quickly, and to ensure that owners are taking responsibility for the safe and respectful use of their properties according to the City.
A Short Term Rental operating year-round with an owner or manager on-site will pay $300. The fee will drop to $150 for a seasonal property. If there is no manager or owner on-site the fee rises dramatically to $1500 per year or $750 seasonally.
The licenses will work on a demerit point system. If a property reaches 7 demerit points it will have its license suspended for six months. If it reaches 15 demerit points the license will be revoked. Demerit points will reset after two years.
There will be a new 24/7 vendor-supported intake and complaint response system. The STR Task Force has suggested that this time period is approximately 20 days, covering the weekends in July and August. Bylaw hours will also be expanded later into the evenings.
Kawartha Lakes Municipal Law Enforcement and Licensing Office is preparing to roll out the program. Initial steps include hiring four new Municipal Law Enforcement Officers, creating a licensing framework and launching the vendor relationship that will enable complaints to be received and actioned on a 24-hour basis.
The program will see a ‘soft rollout’ for the balance of the year. Short Term Rental owners can expect to be contacted by Kawartha Lakes with further information on becoming licensed.