By Roy Wood, Special to the Times Chronicle

Osoyoos is moving ahead with a pilot project to regulate short-term rental accommodations in the town while ensuring that the supply of long-term rental housing is protected.

At a recent committee meeting, council green-lighted drafting of bylaw amendments that will form the basis of a two-to-three-year pilot program aimed at bringing some order to the vacation rental market.

Once the go-ahead for the amendments was approved last week, Mayor Sue McKortoff expressed relief that the nagging issue is headed toward some sort of resolution: “Well, that certainly gives us a start on this, for sure.”

Earlier this year, council exercised its option to opt into the provincial Short-Term Rental Accommodations Act, by which the province hopes to address the spread of such lodging by Airbnb, VRBO and others.   

The province believes that such accommodations worsen the crisis in long-term rental accommodation. The shortage of long-term rentals is seen as a significant problem in Osoyoos.

The provincial act passed in 2023, applied to all municipalities with a population of at least 10,000. It gave smaller jurisdictions the option to opt in which Osoyoos chose to do. 

At last week’s committee of the whole meeting, senior planners Chris Garrish and Shannon Duong outlined the administration’s vision for the town’s plan of attack. 

One of the key elements of the act is that landlords of vacation rentals must be the primary residents of the rental unit.  

Under the so-called “Principal Residence Requirement,” the short-term rental (STR) units will be permitted “within either a single detached dwelling, secondary suite, accessory dwelling or one unit of a duplex.” The maximum number of STR units would be limited to one per lot.

Councillor Johnny Cheong asked how a landlord would be able to prove that an STR property is their primary residence. Garrish said such confirmation will come from the province, which is in the process of creating “some sort of registry.”

The regulations around STRs are proposed to be similar to those already in place for bed and breakfast accommodations in the town. 

There would be a maximum of four bedrooms and a maximum capacity of eight patrons at one time in a unit. And at least one on-site parking spot would be required for each bedroom.

Potential STR landlords will have to obtain a business licence from the town. An application will need to include: proof that the principal residence requirement is met; a floor plan; a health and safety inspection; a fire evacuation plan; and a parking plan.

It is being proposed that the fee for the business licence be set at $750. 

Councillor Jim King suggested the price was a bit steep, particularly compared with other jurisdictions. Garrish pointed out that the licence fee, along with all the other provisions of the pilot project, will come back before council when the specific bylaw amendments are brought forward.

The health and safety inspection required as part of the business licence application would include:

  • A fire evacuation plan posted in the dwelling;
  • At least one visibly mounted fire extinguisher per floor;
  • Interconnected smoke alarms on each level;
  • Carbon monoxide alarms where appropriate;
  • Spark arrestors and regular chimney cleaning;
  • Bedroom windows meeting building code requirements;
  • Guard rails on stairs, decks and balconies;
  • Electrical and gas systems in good repair; and
  • Lockable hot-tub covers and four-foot fences around pools.

At an earlier meeting, council indicated a preference for limiting the number of STR operators to about 130. The report to council, however, recommended against such a limit, citing logistical and manpower challenges such a limit would impose on town staff.

As well, such a limit might encourage the submission of multiple applications or possible “queue manipulation.” 

For these reasons and others, “Administration is recommending that licences be issued to all property owners who are able to meet the criteria established by council to obtain a business licence for an STR.”    

Similarly, the report recommended against a requirement of “valid insurance” for a business licence, terming it “another administrative burden that the town is not equipped to address.”

The report pointed out that “public engagement” sessions have been occurring for more than a year and will continue to gauge the public’s views on the issue of short-term rental accommodations.

A graph included in the report showed that participants in the 2023 engagement process favoured conducting a pilot project by a margin of 48 per cent to 44 per cent, with the remainder being neutral toward the idea. 

As a next step, sometime in the new year, the administration will bring to council proposed amendments to the town’s Official Community Plan, zoning, municipal ticketing and business licensing bylaws.