(New Buffalo, MI) - The New Buffalo City Council has given preliminary approval to a proposed cap on short-term rental homes.

 

Before last night’s vote, second homeowner Laura Murray was escorted by police out of City Hall at the request of Mayor John Humphrey. During public comment, Murray portrayed the mayor as a dictator wanting to restrict the number of short-term rental homes regardless of their economic benefits to the city.

 

“The perception has been created that of a power-hungry mayor whose personal vendetta against short-term rentals has clouded his judgment and is endangering the future of the town,” Murray alleged.

Humphrey ordered her to stop the personal attacks before involving police when she started again to allege the mayor had a personal vendetta against vacation homes.

 

Councilman Mark Robertson disputed claims from opponents of the cap that struggling business owners downtown will struggle even more from limits imposed on the number of short-term rentals.

 

“The downtown business is thriving.  I’ve talked to multiple business people,” said Robertson, who added full-time residents deserve protection against the noise from loud parties and other disruptions from vacation rentals.

 

A final vote is expected on October 18th during the next regularly scheduled meeting of the city council.

 

Under the proposal, no additional vacation homes will be allowed in any of the three residentially zoned areas of the city. However, late next year, officials would be open to the possibility of allowing more short-term rentals if studies over the next several months show there’s adequate room for them in certain areas. Officials said the idea is to avoid short-term rentals from becoming too dense in residential neighborhoods.

 

The city enacted a temporary moratorium on vacation homes 18 months ago to allow officials time to figure out how best to address an explosion in the number of short-term rentals.

 

Supporters of the cap claim that the skyrocketing number of short-term rentals has inflated housing prices and forced longtime resident families with children to go elsewhere.