By Lexi McFarlane, Times Chronicle
A business license application for an Empire Street property has been rejected on the basis that its usage for temporary accommodation purposes was not consistent with the zoning for that property.
The unit at 3-32 Empire Street came under scrutiny after the owner, Mark Reid, applied for a business licence for the property back in April. Previously, the property in question had been listed on the short-term rental (STR) site Airbnb, and it was not an issue of focus under previous circumstances.
Some of those circumstances included the Town of Osoyoos being exempt from the Provincial Principal Residence Requirement, mandating that only primary residences can be used for STRs. Osoyoos only opted in to those requirements back in March.
Through provincial STR data, it was realized that the property was both operating as such without a license and in a part of Osoyoos not zoned for such a use. Within the formal business licence application the Town received from Reid, the intended use was indicated to be similar to what it was previously, leading to the application being turned down.
However, in speaking to Council last week, Reid rejected the idea that his property fell under the STR definition.
“When I go through the Town’s bylaw information, ‘short-term rental accommodation’ is known as a residential dwelling unit, which, my commercial property, I don’t consider a residential dwelling,” Reid explained. “I don’t believe (the property) is even considered in the short-term rental ban.
“I have an accessory dwelling. I do not have a residential dwelling, as per the definitions, nor do I have a principal dwelling unit.”
Reid also stated it was necessary for him to use the property in a manner for temporary accommodation, to take better care of his employees.
“My employees could stay there if they are coming and going for my business.”
At issue, besides the denial of the business licence, was whether any form of accommodation is a permitted use of the property. Not considering the provincial mandate, Town zoning for that block of Empire Street does not permit it to be used as a residence of any sort.
This, along with its pointed-out licence violations, was the point Councillor Zach Poturica emphasized in explaining why the application should still be turned down.
“This is a short-term rental operation, operating in the old zoning where it was prohibited. Operating in the new zoning, where it is still prohibited. And then operating against not only our business licence bylaw, but operating against our short-term rental bylaw,” Poturica said. “In an area where Council has spent the last three years having the conversation that that is not an area, nor should it be an area, that should allow for a short-term rental operation.
“This has skirted the rules once; it’s skirted the current rules. The question now is to uphold the staff decision of refusing the business licence application because not only does it not meet our business licence rules, it doesn’t meet our zoning bylaw rules.”
Councillor Jim King also expressed curiosity about how the property’s use could be enforced.
“How (will) you monitor that it’s not being used?” King asked about the property’s STR history.
Shannon Duong, the Town Planner, said that enforcement, in these cases, isn’t always required by the Town.
“This particular application, the Town was made aware of a short-term rental being operated at the site and it was actually a provincial takedown notice,” Duong explained.
Duong also explained that this is part of why provincial collaboration has been so helpful.
“This is one of the benefits of having the Provincial Primary Residence Requirement in place, it provided us information with the listing being (posted), and it provided a mechanism for the listing to be removed.”
Reid continued to insist that his intended use of the property was a permissible one, and that the zoning his property currently holds doesn’t best fit what its uses are. Ultimately, Mayor Sue McKortoff directed Reid to have further conversations with the Planning Department outside of the meeting.
“I’m going to suggest that the next step would be for you to contact Ms. Duong, and go through all of the issues,” McKortoff said. “It can come back to Council once you have got all of the information, because we’re not agreeing on this right now.”
The denial of the business licence was upheld by a unanimous vote of Council.
