(Post has been updated)
I live in a residential neighborhood and my neighbors are the best.
Well, except the one I don’t know because it changes a few times a week.
You see, I live next to an Air BnB or what is known as a short-term rental. In Fredon, that‘s currently being defined as anything being rented for under 28-days.
I do not nor cannot speak for my Home Owners Association.
From what I can tell, the owners do not live in the state - let alone the house. They seem to take no interest or stake in our community and many of their guests don’t know or follow safety rules.
The Air BnB corporation has ignored multiple complaints from our neighborhood. The State Police have no jurisdiction to really help other than to break up parties after they’ve already become a nuisance. And, Fredon doesn’t have a police force of its own to help us patrol the area.
Dogs not on leashes. Ice skating on two inches of ice. Fireworks. Parties until 2 a.m. Trash in our yards. Swimming without life jackets. Mesh pool fence. Double parking so emergency vehicles can’t get by. Weddings without permits. Construction without permits. Twelve people or many, many more in a 4-bedroom septic ready to affect our dear pond.
These nightly renters even leave the garbage out for days depending on when they come and go. Aside from a health hazard, I can’t let my children out to play without being outside too now since a bear family quickly found an easy buffet and doesn’t run when it sees humans.
Yes, we all call the right government agencies to complain.
And, the most difficult part isn’t even not being able to let my kids out because of the bear.
It’s having to watch my kids closely because strangers are constantly across the street.
Could that be true of any community because neighbors have guests? Yes, but those strangers are my neighbors’ guests and I know my neighbors and my neighbors are home with them and can vouch for them.
I live next to a motel now. A commercial use in a residential zone and I am concerned about drug dealers, sex offenders, forest fires, and the possibility that my neighbors who serve on the fire and EMS teams will have to risk their lives to help one of these nightly guests get out of the house, pool, or pond one day.
We’re not the only short-term rental issue in town. In fact, we’re the third issue I believe.
We’re not the only town to pursue options. Stillwater is about to pass a similar ordinance and from what I understand, the Township Attorney already had a template for the ordinance because it is such a common issue faced by other local towns, such as Vernon and Roxbury.
Do we need an ordinance against short-term rentals of under 28-days?
I believe a motel is already not a permitted use in a residential zone, so maybe not. It might already be illegal.
Should we handle it as an HOA? We have and we do, but this is a Fredon issue.
The code of Fredon Township - a farming town - even limits the size of animals we are allowed to have in a two-acre residential area.
“No person, corporation, partnership or owner or lessee of real estate in the Township of Fredon shall keep any large animals, such as, but not limited to, horses, ponies, cattle, sheep and goats, except in accordance with the provisions of this article… The lot involved must consist of two acres or more; the keeping of one large animal is permitted… The location is such as to preclude odors and sounds from interfering with the comfortable enjoyment of life and property of neighboring premises.”
A motel shouldn‘t be any different than a pony when the Master Plan of Fredon lists its objectives as “promoting public health, safety, morals, and general welfare” and the “well being of persons, neighborhoods, and communities.”
Should we handle it with more code enforcement? Two years of reporting hasn’t gotten us far.
The Township Committee has worked on this issue with our neighborhood. They deserve credit for driving by and speaking with us and seeing for themselves how this liability and safety issue can quickly spread to any house on the market right now, especially with a wedding venue in town. I share my thanks to the Committee once again for their support on this.
No one wants more ordinances or laws, but health and safety have to guide our priorities in Fredon, and those will always be priorities to me whether I am elected or not.
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