Mindy Leary, Gilpin County. The Gilpin County Planning Commission met virtually via Zoom on Tuesday, August 11, 2020, at 7 p.m. to discuss Short-term Rental (STR) regulations. Quorum call included Chair Laura Jeney, Pro-tem Jim Walles, Joe Marr, Andrea Wrobel, Shannon Arrington, Roxann Goss, Bob Haxel, David Sietsema and Dorothy Sweet. Staff present included Stephen Strohminger, Senior Planner, Tami Archer, Planner, and Kristina Mahoney, Secretary.

Applications for position of commissioner are due by August 27 as there are two vacant positions due to resignation. The planning commission will advertise for the position in local newspapers and possibly Facebook. 

The public hearing discussing the language for regulations for short-term rentals commenced with public comment held at the end. Anyone with a vested interest in STR regulations were asked to recuse themselves due to conflict of interest. These regulations will be eventually be voted on by the Gilpin County Board of County Commissioners for final ratification.

  JimWalles said, “We’re developing a process here that gives staff the ability to see what’s going on with these things.”

State sales tax for STRs is collected via private organizations like AirBnB and VRBO, but if the taxes aren’t collected by the site then taxes should be directly remitted to the state.

Strohminger spoke about operating permits and regulation compliance conforming to the county code. Each STR owner must also have a contact person that is available 24 hours a day and must reside within thirty minutes of the property. Whether or not the contact person must reside in the county will remain a question for County Attorney Brad Benning.

Operating permits will last one year from date of issuance which will be the first day of the following month upon application approval and finalization. 

Radon assessment, fire extinguishers and carbon monoxide/smoke detectors were discussed next. Certificate of occupancy requires the residence to meet state codes and regulations.

No non-renters will be allowed except for temporary events which already require a county permit. Noise ordinance according to state regulation will also be enforced.

Garbage shall be removed weekly and the residence cleaned between each use. Roxy said, “As long as we take away the garbage and clean in between people we should be good.”

Any fire facilities like fire pits or wood burning stoves will require defensible space and suppressants like a hose. Discharge of fireworks and firearms are strictly prohibited at STRs. 

Wrobel who has operated an STR for ten years said, “Fires should be allowed with the proper facilities. We shouldn’t be disallowing this use.”

No fire is to be left unattended and must be completely extinguished. Current fire bans should be disclosed to the renters. 

Pets are required to be on leash or in a fully enclosed fence. Animal waste must be collected in bags. No more than four dogs are allowed, per county code. 

Address numbers must be posted on the exterior of residence and/or the driveway entrance, so the address is clearly visible from the traveled road.

The owner shall post information about the permit, contact info, maximum number of occupants and vehicles, a boundary map, garbage schedule, fire suppression rules and bans and other STR rules in a convenient location on the premises. Good neighbor guidelines, modeled after Nederland’s, should also be posted and include a slew of handy tips concerning noise, wildlife and lighting. 

Wrobel stressed that the county should not be indemnified in case of accident and Chair Jeney responded that owners should be held liable in the case of negligence. One person suggested that the recommendation to BoCC on August 25 would be for the County Attorney to redress the language on liability.

“Owner agrees to compensate Gilpin County for any expenses incurred in the defense of any lawsuit or actions against Gilpin County,” was a point of contention as it lacked the caveat, “as a result of the operation of the short-term rental,” so it was struck from the draft.

Two adults per county-recognized bedroom will be the maximum amount of people allowed to stay at an STR at any given time, per state regulation. The capacity of the septic system according to the county was suggested as a guideline for maximum occupancy by Haxel, but concerns were raised that county records may not be adequate in this regard. The septic must be pumped and inspected by a county-licensed use permit provider every two years.

If there’s a code violation, then the owner has 10 days to come into compliance. The quorum was concerned with possible habitual offenders and adjudicated the verbiage to reflect this. “The whole point is to create accountability for the permit holder,” said Wrobel.

 If there are two violations in six months, the property owner will be fined by the county. Four violations over the course of the year will result in revocation and a one-year moratorium on permit renewal.

Public Hearing Order Zoning 2.16 Short-Term rentals was held at 10:17 p.m. Public comment on STRs was then held for two minutes per comment. The Planning Commission is not the final arbiter, its purpose is to review the issue based on land use, zoning and current Master Plan guidance. Their decision is a recommendation for or against to the Board of County Commissioners.

One comment focused on outsiders buying out real estate for STR profits and how that limits the long-term rental market and artificially drives up the market.

Sandy Hollingsworth also referenced that smoking materials need also be extinguished. She also mentioned the need to define “pets” versus dogs. 

Another resident brought up changing the verbiage of driving time to mileage in respects to the contact person’s distance from the property.

Patricia Eaton wanted to see recycling requirements for the guests by the owner. She would also like to see transparency where the owners give their contact information to the neighbors which might preclude code violations.  

The public hearing concluded at 10:40 p.m.

(Originally published in the August 20, 2020, edition of The Mountain-Ear.)