On Tuesday, July 14, 2020 the Talbot County Council will consider tightening the Short-Term Rental laws not once, not twice, but for the third time in two years. This, despite unprecedented demand by families wanting to rent private homes in Talbot County to provide a safe space for themselves and their loved ones. The proposed Bill 1446 will hurt our local economy and our attempts at recovery from the pandemic fallout.
It is fact. More and ever more extensive, intrusive and expensive regulations reduce the number of STR licenses issued. The current scheme is onerous and Byzantine enough. The proposed scheme inflicts even more damage because it discourages home owners from even bothering to apply for a license.
The added “red tape” being proposed is at worst ridiculous — and at best, ill-conceived. The County requires thousands upon thousands of sheets of paper and costly copying and Priority mailings to apply for and/or renew licenses. Beyond killing more trees than are on Poplar Island, the result is fewer STR homes and beds available for our visitors to Talbot County.
Here is one example of the absurd amount of red tape:
In the October 17, 2019 final minutes of the Short Term Rental Review Board Hearing, the County’s Assistant Planning Officer stated that more than 4,000 copies were made in the last month alone for that Board (which, incidentally had met two times that month). 4,000 copies!
Every Talbot County retail shop, restaurant, tradesman, landscaper, plumber, electrician, pool company — and County coffers — who would benefit financially should be aware and alarmed about this anti-tourism legislation coming from Planning and Zoning, driven by a dozen or so local, vocal retired residents.
A small group of anti-tourism residents who object in writing to every single period and comma on an application has found a sympathetic ear with one or two powerful — and unaccountable — County bureaucrats and some Council Members who carry their water.
Public hearings on STR changes have been ‘coincidently‘ scheduled at Thanksgiving, Christmas and Fourth of July weeks, when strangely, people are focused on their families. The proposed legislation was drafted by bureaucrats who did not solicit live public testimony of owners, owners and operators who have the most experience applying for licenses and actually welcoming families to Talbot County.
A handful of anti-family, anti-vacation residents purchased homes in a tourist town — and now — ironically oppose tourism. One should not buy a home adjacent to railroad tracks and then whine about the sound of the train. The STR law pleases the rare few. Instead, it wreaks havoc on and hurts many local businesses, and all those whose livelihoods depend upon them.
The County Council should be loosening these already overburdensome regulations rather than discouraging visitors and further hurting our local businesses and County economy — particularly given the current circumstances.
Why is the Council discouraging more STRs? Who wins and who loses?
Why does the County spend millions of taxpayer dollars promoting tourism and attracting visitors but seek to limit places for guests to stay overnight? Here are more facts:
In 2018, (according to Tourism Economics for the MD Office of Tourism Development), more than 588,700 people visited TC and approximately 39% stayed overnight.
Tourism generated $217 million in revenue, directly supporting 1,971 jobs; second homes also contribute 13.3% of Talbot County’s tourism revenue.
While Talbot’s Tourism numbers continue to impress, the truth is that with a mere 1,171 rooms (hotel/motel/B&B), there simply are not enough beds to support the numbers of tourists. STRs offer a completely different product/experience, one that is essential to continue to support this business activity.
Despite our government design “by the people and for the people”, the anti-STR and anti-tourism group has driven this policy and continues to seek a law so miserable and complicated it essentially equates to a ban. They continue to use the tools of speculation and misinformation to promote what can only be described as “STRangulations.”
This anti-tourism group predicted loud, drunken hordes would invade the County rental homes, like Blackbeard sailing up the Miles River, pillaging and burning. With three years of evidence and statistics available, that prediction has turned out to be patently false. STR owners (and TC taxpayers!) continue to demonstrate responsible oversight. The sum total of reported “violations” consisted of a barking dog and a handful of STR owners who were inadvertently advertising incorrectly.
Families rent homes in TC to attend nearby weddings, anniversaries, birthdays, grandparents enjoying their families together for a weekend or a week. Talbot County STRs are not Ocean City Beach Week rentals. Here are just two of hundreds of positive, heartwarming family experiences:
“Yours is a dream of a home to spend your vacation. As other folks have stated who have had the experience of staying here, just pack your bags and get here! Everything else is waiting for you to enjoy. We brought our boat and fishing rods as well as crabbing gear. So for two evenings we had fresh seafood from the dock/river – our sons had the best time on the boat and as well as using the paddle boards and kayaks. Every day was spent outside and every evening sitting around the fire pit. Shopping is a few miles away and St. Michaels is also around the corner. Amazing!!”
“Years ago, the National Brewery had a tagline for their beers — they were from “The Land of Pleasant Living.” That has become synonymous with the Chesapeake Bay region. Your home brings that notion to life. Our family had an amazing 2 week stay during Covid time, and it ranks with our best vacations ever. The house is perfectly appointed; the property/setting is breath-taking. We made great use of the pool, the kayaks, and the cornhole boards! We had lunch in Oxford, got carryout pizza from Ava’s in St. Michaels and got steamed crabs from the Crab Shack, but in a future trip we will make greater use of the many restaurants in the region.”
The short-term rental season is short. It tracks the school calendar, mid-June until mid-August. An estimated 15,000 visitors opt for rental housing. If the County continues to shrink and not grow that number of visitors by passing more onerous laws, what will the economic impact be on all small businesses— and particularly those tourist-dependent local businesses already struggling?
The evolving STR regulations in TC are a textbook case of “squeaky wheels getting the grease.” The Council needs to widen its lens. It needs to look at the past three years of facts and evidence.
Private property owners should be able to use their property in a consistent manner as STRs don’t change the use at all as families gather for vacations and special moments together.
The County Council should respect private property rights and not seek to mollify a small group angry at everyone who is not just like them; a small group who don’t live anywhere near rental properties; a small group who has formed a cottage industry bent on ‘my way or the highway’.
Is this who we are? Is this who we want to be?
Keith Watts
Talbot Vacation Advocates
Helen Chappell says
How does Keith Watts benefit from this? In the interests of full disclosure, your readers need to know.
Linda Hamilton says
Isn’t this an issue to visit AFTER the pandemic ends? Right now we are relatively safe because there are few visitors, and I have seen evidence that the locals are not welcoming tourists at this time. At the grocery store yesterday I watched while a man wrote “Go Home” on the dust of a car with an out state license plate. (I would call that a peaceful protest.) So, Keith, it appears that this may not be who we want to be but it is who we are right now; concerned with our own family’s safety and health. Let this issue slide for another year. This year we could use some peace in the kingdom.
Danna Murphy Murden says
We live at a dead end with approximately 50 houses and it makes a circle. We got home from Texas the end of March and in driving through our neighborhood to get to our house we past three groups totaling seven people we did not know. Now this is a small neighborhood if we do not know them personally we know them by sight. We have a neighbor who bikes daily and after a few days seeing us home stopped by to say hi, we asked who all these people were. His answer he did not know. It is now July and it has been a continuous flow of strangers in our neighborhood. There are a couple STR’s that we know about but there must be more fore all of these people. Do you think we are happy in this time of COVID-19 – NO. AM I a move in here no I grew up on Tilghman got 9 generations under my belt in the Bay Hundred region (which St.Michaels is not part of). And go back to the 1700 in St. Michaels , I would say I am from here and am entitled to my opinion. I am retired and guess what most of my retirement income comes from” the tourists”. But I don’t think they should be in our neighborhoods disrupting our day today life. And they have never done so like they have this year with COVID-19 so don’t go on about a short window, we have put up with them for four months now and the season is far from over. The more rules the better and the less STR’s the better for our neighborhoods!
Joan Young says
Actually, these regulations affect county residents not those who reside in towns. There are many more than a few retired residents who do not want to see the commericial operation of STRs in their neighborhoods. There are certainly many properties in the county which are not located in subdivisions, but every buyer in a subdivision is expected to abide by the provisions of the deed restrictions which for many neighborhoods include no business or commercial operations in the properties. The deed restrictions are recorded in the court house for a reason. County council members and employees should support established deed restrictions, not undercut them.
Keith Watts says
Thank you for your comments. Bless your heart. They are appreciated.
May I respectfully refer you to an Open Letter sent to the Council and The Short Term Rental Review Board, dated July, 6th, 2020, to wit:
President Kane, Vice President McQuay, Honorable Members Suss, Nilson and Reichert,
Good morning.
I hope this finds you well. I trust you enjoyed a respite this weekend, away from the rigors of civic duty.
At last week’s Short Term Rental Review Board (“STRRB”) hearings (the first since December), commentary on the record asserted Short Term Rentals (“STRs”) are commercial enterprises and/or businesses.
More troubling was that these comments were embraced and endorsed by the STRRB’s President and Vice President. Even after commentators referred to Maryland‘s law as being the polar opposite, the STRRB’s President and Vice President nevertheless continued with a false narrative of STRs as commercial enterprises and/or businesses.
They are not.
In Maryland, this is settled, “black letter law.” Lowden v. Bosley, 909 A.2d 261 (Md. 2006).
Stated simply, STRs are residential — not commercial. Valuable time — the public‘s and the STRRB’s — was wasted on a question long since decided.
In fairness, no one expects everyone be familiar with every legal nuance governing STRs. But for those who serve in the public interest to be unfamiliar with this bedrock tenet is, however, inexplicable, bordering on negligence.
In the next eight days, STRs find themselves on several agendas. On July 9, there is a morning meeting (Planning Commission) followed by a meeting of the STRRB. On July 14, the County Council follows with a robust agenda, including STRs Bill 1446.
As sure as the sun rises, the PC, STRRB and County Council will hear this argument again — no STRs because they are business or commercial enterprises incompatible with residential neighborhoods.
As a wise waterman once said: “That dog don’t hunt.”
Maryland’s Court of Appeals rejected that position. In Lowden, a restrictive covenant required all subdivision lots be used for “single family residential purposes only,” thus prohibiting short-term rentals.
Lowden held the opposite. The covenant plainly allowed residential rentals — no matter if the rental was short or long term. An STR’s transitory or temporary nature does not change its residential status.
“‘Residential use,’ . . . has been consistently interpreted as meaning that the use of the property is for living purposes, or a dwelling, or a place of abode . . . . The transitory or temporary nature of such use does not defeat the residential status . . . . While the owner may be receiving rental income, the use of the property is unquestionably ‘residential.’ The fact that the owner receives rental income is not, in any way, inconsistent with the property being used as a residence.”
Against the backdrop of a loss of confidence in our governing institutions, it is critical that those who serve are — at a minimum — familiar with the laws they oversee, enforce or apply.
The STRRB’s President and Vice President must: 1) acknowledge this distortion, omission or misunderstanding on their part; 2) acknowledge this on the record in their next meeting; and 3) demonstrate that they are now thoroughly familiar with and possess a substantive working knowledge of STRs. STRs are not businesses or commercial enterprises.
While certain members of the PC, STRRB and/or Council may personally disagree with the Court’s findings or hold differing viewpoints from time to time, nevertheless they are bound by those findings. As a U.S. Senator once said:
“You are entitled to your opinion. But you are not entitled to your own facts.”
Michael Estrella says
Having lived across the street from a home that was used by its owner as a shirt term rental (STR), I can assure Keith Watts that I am not part of a small group nor am I “angry at everyone”. What I am is a good neighbor who takes care of his property, takes pride in the neighborhood, and like to help his neighbors when they need it. The residents on our street range in age from mid 40s to late 80s. Some of us are full time residents and some are weekenders. Then, there was this one house smack in the middle of the neighborhood that was used as a STR. The town code doesn’t permit STRs in this residential zone so the folks were ignoring town regulations to rent out the home. Often renters arrived in the late evening hours so there was always the noise of boisterous visitors, slamming car doors, and often as not, partying as the visitor unwound from their trip. Often as not the dwelling would be over crowded. On one weekend in particular the total number of people packed like sardines into this small two bedroom house was 16 people who arrived in 9 different vehicles, two of which were left parked in a driveway not belonging to that house. The immediate neighbors were in their late 80s so all the activity was a bit of a chronic issue for them and for other who suddenly woke up to a street full of poorly parked cars and trash bags everywhere and weekend long partying and….well, I could go on but you get the point I’m sure. When the homeowners were contacted by the town they assured the town that these were “cousins”. The problem with their explanation wss that their “cousans” never stayed more than once and by the next weekend, there was a whole new batch of “cousins”.
You say that “The County Council should respect private property rights” but that is exactly what they are doing. In our little neighborhood there are 8 homes including the illegal STR. The county and other government entities are protecting the rights of the full time residents and weekends to enjoy their homes in peace and tranquility. It seems to me that what you really want is to be allowed to create disruption in these neighborhoods in search of the mighty dollar, to feed your greed and the rights of others be damned.
I’m not a member of a small group that is angry at everyone and that needs to be mollified. I’m just a resident in a home in a residential zone who wants peace and quiet at night!
Mike Estrella
St. Michaels
Robert Haase says
Mr. Watts used an old waterman saying, I wonder if he’s heard the one that says “if it looks like a duck, flies like a duck and walks like a duck, it must be a duck”.
If a Short Term Rental is used to house transients for a few days at a time, must be licensed, pays hotel tax’s, uses hired help to clean, landscape after each use then I say it is a commercial use regardless what the court says. The original intent of STR’s was based on house sharing, meaning if you wanted to rent your house while you go on vacation you could
.
But opportunist have discovered much money can be made with STR’s. An example just happened in Bentley Hay last week, a commercial corporation recently purchased a 5 bedroom home next to a long time B&B. The new owners attorney made it clear they were in it for the money and in fact were looking for more. The STRB had overwhelming comments from neighbors in opposition to grant the license and only one in favor. Some Board members ignored the community and granted the license by a vote of 3 to 2. The votes in favor were from a licensed Talbot Realtor and an active Short Term Rental manager. So Mr. Watts coming from someone who’s been involved in this since the beginning I think STR’s in Talbot are safe as long as this present council is in place. And finally I am not against STR’s I have been renting one for the last 8 years for vacation. They just don’t belong it certain neighborhoods as said by Eastern Shore Vacation Rentals representative Ken Mann at a County Council public hearing on August 14, 2018, Mr. Mann stated:
“It does us no good to have troubled homes in places they don’t belong or people arguing about them.”
“Where there have been issues, they’ve generally been in places like those two neighborhoods [Bentley Hay and Rio Vista] where short-term rentals just don’t belong. We would agree there are places that are not appropriate.”
Keith Watts says
Mr. Haase. Bless your heart. Your comments are appreciated. This Talbot Spy Chat sums it up in sixteen seconds. 00:00 – 00.16.
https://youtu.be/mrSVtR5HYf4
“My experience — I don’t have an experience, negative or positive here in St. Michaels with vacation rentals by owners . . . .” Robert Haase”
Thank you for sharing.
Robert Haase says
And I’m working hard to keep it that way.
Charles Barranco says
Mr Watts,
Recently, I attended a STRRB hearing for approval of an application for a property sharing the same 10 foot side set back with a Bed and Breakfast. Ironically, BnBs are prohibited from being within 500 feet of one another, yet an STR is not? They have identical property uses, yet there are two sets of rules governing the properties?
BnBs are deemed, Commercial Use, and STRs are not?
In fact BnBs are controlled by onsite ownership 24/7, unlike STRs that do NOT have any oversight except a rental agent listed for the property. Both are located in Residential neighborhoods, wherein Residents have an expectation of quiet enjoyment of their property and lives.
The hearing for the STR, incidentally, owned by an LLC, which ALSO owns, 40 plus such properties, admittedly confirmed by their attorney, places an overbuilt 5 bedroom house next door to the BnB with 2 bedrooms. There are no restrictions of 500 feet between STRs, But, a BnB must be 500 feet apart. I guess that rule was made so that BnBs wouldn’t unduly overburden a neighborhood.
But, thanks to the Real Estate companies and people like you, a beautiful, residential neighborhood, under current law can be lined with STRs owned by absentee owners who in time will destroy the very nature and backbone of a Community.
The case you sighted was decided in 2006, 14 years ago. I believe it’s time that case is overruled to protect our neighborhoods before they are overrun with commercial enterprises for the sake of another Haymaker for the greed of Real Estate Companies.
BTW, as you know, since you spoke in favor of the application, it was approved! There are now 2 STRs and a BnB, All Within 300 feet of each other!
Willard T Engelskirchen says
Vacationers staying at Short Term Rentals are, at this time a hazard. They put too many people in the rental. They do not self quarantine – after all they are only staying for a week or two. They just do not fit Talbot County right now.
Early in the pandemic I was in the St. Michaels Post Office. A man came in with Florida plates on his vehicle. He wanted to know how he could get his mail forwarded from Florida. Quarantine? Not for him.
If our residents want to see what happens when a town is filled with out of towners only there for a few days and nobody lives there, go to Cape May NJ. That is not the kind of place most of us want to live in.
We live here year round. We want stability and reason. There are important issues such as making small businesses easier to manage here (broadband ?). IMHO STR’s ought to be put on hold.
Steve Shimko says
Response to Keith Watts’ Talbot Spy Op-Ed Piece
Mr. Watts stated “A handful of anti-family, anti-vacation residents purchased homes in a tourist town — and now — ironically oppose tourism. One should not buy a home adjacent to railroad tracks and then whine about the sound of the train”
Not true. I did not buy a home in Saint Michaels, or Easton, or Ocean City, or Deep Creek Lake. I bought a home in Talbot County. I moved here not because of the tourists, but rather in spite of them.
He further states “Every Talbot County retail shop, restaurant, tradesman, landscaper, plumber, electrician, pool company — and County coffers — who would benefit financially should be aware and alarmed about this anti-tourism legislation coming from Planning and Zoning, driven by a dozen or so local, vocal retired residents.”
There are a couple of things wrong with this line of reasoning. All of the STRs I’m aware of in Talbot County were converted single family homes. Those homes required all the services Mr. Watts seems to think are only needed by an STR property – retail shops, restaurant, tradesman, landscaper, plumber, electrician, pool company. An STR does not increase the demand for those services.
And his comment about STR regulations being “driven by a dozen or so local, vocal retired residents” is flat out wrong. I am opposed to unfettered STRs, and I am still working (52-1/2 years and counting). I design products critical to our nation’s security and to support our warfighters. What’s your background, Mr. Watt’s? Are you still working? And if so how relevant is your job?
Keith Watts says
Mr. Schimko, my friend. Bless your heart. I admit it. You absolutely did it. You got me fair and square. I’m irrelevant. I could never have opened my heart as you did to create a safe place for reasoned dialogue and thoughtful discussion. You welcome people to a place where they can share their feelings, emotions and opinions in a considerate and rational way. For that, I extend my gratitude. And, since you asked about my background — I’m an undertaker. I undertake to help those without a voice (I sing), those who are not heard (I speak) and those who have patiently waited just shy of a year for a seat at the table — a seat repeatedly pulled out from under them. A place where if — if they are lucky — they are tossed crumbs (I waited tables). Not now, though. I’m no longer waiting . . . tables. Now I undertake to turn them. Thank you for reaching out.
Sandra Wilbanks says
Frankly I don’t know what all the fuss is about ! I live next door to a STR.. for last 5 years . Not only have I never felt compromised/ or inconvenienced…but instead…have met and enjoyed many of the families renting the home! And – I have rented it on several occasions for extended family visits!! I have a vegetable garden and I invite renters over to enjoy my bounty… and they inevitably make something and gift it to me ! You-all need to open up your hearts a little !
Kristin j says
Frankly I don’t know what all the fuss is about ! I live next door to a STR.. for last 5 years . Not only have I never felt compromised/ or inconvenienced…but instead…have met and enjoyed many of the families renting the home! And – I have rented it on several occasions for extended family visits!! I have a vegetable garden and I invite renters over to enjoy my bounty… and they inevitably make something and gift it to me ! You-all need to open up your hearts a little !
Maura Vanderzon says
My family has rented homes on the Eastern Shore for the past 20 years. With longtime family ties to the area, once I had my own family, it became necessary to rent separate homes when my out-of- town siblings and I wished to spend our vacations close to our parents. It was an ideal solution, as we could all gather together for larger family visits or meals, but retreat to our rental homes when we were finished. My husband and I grew to love the area so much that we began to look for our own home a few years ago. After several years of searching, in 2017 we finally found our ideal spot on the Miles between Easton and St. Michaels.
With two teens very active in sports and other extracurriculars in the DC suburbs, we weren’t able to enjoy our new home as much as we had hoped and so we decided that, rather than having it sit vacant during times we couldn’t use it, it made sense for us to rent to other families as we did for so many years. I applied for an STR license and was surprised and a bit overwhelmed with all of the detailed requirements and the amount of redundant paperwork and “busywork” involved (making copies of documents that the County already holds, sending numerous certified letters, etc.). However, I proceeded with the arduous process, received my license and was able to renew for a two-year period after the first year, for which I was grateful.
Now in our third season of renting, it has been nothing but smooth sailing. The families who have stayed in our home have all been respectful and responsible, and many of them have come to love the same things that we do about the area. A good barometer of this is that four weeks of this summer’s rentals were booked by last season’s returning guests and a few of our guests are now even searching for their own “perfect spot” on the Shore.
I realize that not everyone’s experience has been as ideal as ours, and I am in no way suggesting that we don’t need reasonable regulations on short-term rentals. However, it does seem that there is an effort on the part of some residents in the County to make the process as difficult, cumbersome and onerous as possible, which is extremely discouraging. The County Council has the chance to vote to make some of the especially restrictive requirements a bit less burdensome, and to simplify the overall process to ensure that STR’s are safe and well-regulated, while at the same time helping to make it easier for homeowners who choose to open their homes to visitors who decide on Talbot County as their vacation destination. This in turn helps to support our local economy when these visitors open their wallets and patronize our restaurants and small businesses. And of course all STR license holders also pay taxes to the County.
We are not, never have been, and never will be a destination like Ocean City. College kids are not renting the rather expensive homes in our area to come and drink and party and cause trouble. There are only 150 or so short-term rentals in the County, most of them used as second homes by their owners whenever possible. By any reasonable measure, Talbot County is NOT being overrun by short-term rentals.
There is currently so much anger and vitriol in our national dialogue. Can’t we figure out a way to create a win/win situation for everyone in our County without resorting to unpleasantness among our fellow residents?
Robert Haase says
Just wondering were your rentals are. There is a Hugh difference between a STR on a large lot as opposed to one in a town zone. Thats why our towns like Easton and St Michaels have strict regulations and probably why all our Council lives in Easton and ignores Talbots neighborhoods and villages. I remember O C was a family vacation destination not a party town. If Talbot County does not take STR’s seriously we will be a resort just like OC.