Whitestone will be looking to schedule a hybrid public consultation meeting in the new year to discuss its proposed update to the short-term rental unit bylaw.
Included in council’s agenda for Nov. 7 was a staff report providing the status of the municipality’s update to its 2014 bylaw, which allowed property owners to apply for a licence.
Back in 2021, council recognized the importance of reviewing and updating the seven-year-old bylaw as the problem of short-term rentals continued to pop up around the province.
In the span of three years, 39 licences have been issued by the municipality, but the report noted there was no confident way of determining the actual number of short-term rental units in Whitestone, with estimates at well over 100 units.
What are neighbours up to?
East Ferris passed a bylaw regulating short-term rentals in May 2022, and the number of illegal units dropped significantly.
Magnetawan anticipated its bylaw to come into effect in 2024 as Callander entered the early stages of deciding whether or not to implement regulatory bylaws.
Seguin staff recommended licensing short-term rentals in March 2023, which council opposed, but work continued on updating quality-of-life bylaws.
Archipelago backed the Town of Fort Erie’s resolution in August, which called on the province to create a regulatory framework for digital platforms like Airbnb and VRBO.