Pooler has second town hall to advance short-term rental ordinance discussion

At a much more sparsley attended town hall than the previous one held in March, Pooler residents gathered last week to provide feedback on a proposed short-term rental ordinance.

Four months ago, Pooler City Council presented a draft ordinance along with a six-month moratorium to halt the issuance of business licenses for short-term rentals within the city limits. The majority of residents who spoke then and on July 2 seemed to favor strict regulations.

The updated version of the draft offered a few changes: business license fees and fines for non-compliance were incorporated in a schedule to allow the city to gradually increase them at a later date; proof that adjacent property owners to the STR had been notified; proof of insurance; and a "good neighbor" policy similar to Tybee's recently passed ordinance.

The City of Pooler has never had an ordinance regulating STRs, and anyone wanting to operate one had to apply for a business license. Pooler does not keep a database of STRs, so the exact number operating wthin the city is unknown, but the new ordinance would allow them to track and enforce the new regulations.

"Despite the hard work of everyone here, we're all human and this document will be a document written by humans for humans," said Mayor Pro Tem Aaron Higgins. "So, it's not going to be perfect, but we're going to darn tootin' try to make it perfect on the first try."

The first public commenter at Tuesday's meeting emphasized that at the previous meeting, it seemed that the short-term rental owners who spoke didn't live in Pooler.

"I just don't see the need within our city," said city resident Michelle Ward. "I think the damage that it will do will far outweigh the benefits, and I understand property rights, but we also have property rights to our citizens. When a unit is taken off the market, it's not just a change in that unit, it fundamentally changes the neighborhood, the entire community. When a person leaves an area, someone loses a babysitter, a passing conversation."

Despite this, she said that she agreed with most of what the ordinance was attempting to do but had issues with a few items, including thinking that STRs should have conditional use permits instead of existing in residential areas "by right." Some other residents agreed, but Mayor Karen Williams said according to legal advice from the city attorney, they have to allow rentals in residential neighborhoods to not open themselves up to lawsuits.

"I really felt that same way, but I have to listen to legal," Williams said. "If you say, this neighbor can have it, but this neighbor can't. That's a lawsuit right there."

Fewer short-term rental owners spoke at Tuesday's town hall in comparison with the March meeting, but many residents spoke to specific parts of the ordinance, highlighting needs for consolidation of similar items or clearer language.

"I don't want to see neighborhoods erased, turned into nothing more than horizontal hotels," Higgins said. "But I also don't want to tread on property rights - it's a fine line to tread, and I get that. This is a good first step."

Williams said staff will take the feedback into consideration before the next draft of the ordinance is presented.

Destini Ambus is the general assignment reporter for Chatham County municipalities for the Savannah Morning News. You can reach her at dambus@gannett.com