County to review vacation rental rules

Valley residents who use their home as an occasional vacation rental may want to take a short trip of their own to La Luz Center this Monday – that’s when the county Permitting and Resource Management Department will hold a meeting to review vacation rental ordinances and consider updates.

Last fall, the Sonoma County Board of Supervisors initiated a review of the county’s Vacation Rental Ordinance to examine the effectiveness of the ordinance and its provisions, which include neighborhood compatibility and vacation rental management. Ways to better enforce the existing ordinance provisions will also be considered.

In the county, homes and guest homes ?intended for “permanent occupancy” but rented out for less than 30 days are considered vacation rentals. A vacation rental cannot be an uninhabitable structure, like a barn or garage, and does not include bed and breakfasts or occasional home exchanges that are not subject to the Transient Occupancy Tax. Vacation rentals are allowed in agricultural zoning districts and in most residential zoning districts with a zoning permit or use permit. They are not allowed on any property under a Williamson Act agricultural preservation contract or on properties zoned for high-density housing.

Specific issues that will be discussed Monday include neighbor notification, noise, parking, events, health and safety, loss of housing stock, and any other topics that come up.

The Vacation Rental Ordinance does not regulate off-site impacts, such as street parking, speeding or renter conduct off site. The meeting is set for Monday, Feb. 9, from 3:30 to 6 p.m. in Booker Hall at La Luz Center. La Luz is located at 17560 Greger Street in Sonoma. Parking is limited.