Vacation rental
resolutions move

Noisy parties, drug use and parking problems were just a few of the complaints voiced yesterday by island residents fed up with illegal bed-and-breakfast and other vacation rentals in their communities.

"The neighborhood suffers and the neighbor suffers. The situation is bad," Lanikai resident Roger Ulveling told the City Council's Zoning Committee, which approved legislation to crack down on the illegal short-term visitor rentals.

"To B-and-B or not to B-and-B, that is the question. As for me at my house, we say no," said Kalana Best of Lanikai.

But supporters say not all of them are scofflaws or bad neighbors and their businesses pump a lot of dollars into these communities.

"It is a rice bowl issue for me. I see it benefiting Kailua immensely," said David Dunham, a real estate agent who lives in Lanikai.

After testimony that in some cases pitted neighbor against neighbor, the Zoning Committee approved two resolutions that will go before the Council on July 6. It could take months before the resolutions become law.

If the full Council approves the resolutions, there will be further hearings by the Department of Planning and Permitting and the Planning Commission. The Council will consider any amendments before a final vote.

One resolution proposes that advertisements for transient vacation rentals carry the operator's use permit number, similar to what is required for contractors. Violators could face civil fines of $1,000 to $5,000.

The second resolution would lift the 1989 ban on bed and breakfast rentals in residential areas by treating them like home businesses.

Homes occupied by the owner, lessee or operator could operate a bed and breakfast using two to three bedrooms, depending on the zoning. A permit application would be denied if a majority of nearby residents files a protest with the city.

Bed and breakfast operators would also be required to carry their permit numbers on their advertisements or face the same fines as transient vacation units, which aren't required to have an owner or proprietor living on the premises.

"It is clear that the law that we have currently is unenforceable," said Zoning Chairwoman Barbara Marshall, who introduced the measures along with Council Chairman Donovan Dela Cruz, both of whom represent districts with vacation rental problems.

"Both resolutions propose enforcement tools that (the city) does not have," she said.

Kathy Bryant-Hunter, chairwoman of the Kailua Neighborhood Board, said there are 433 vacation rentals and at least 50 bed-and-breakfast units in Kailua.

"I think people are very concerned because we've had 15 years of a regulation on the books that hasn't worked. And so I think people are just looking at it with a fine tooth comb ... and perhaps we're going to find some loopholes here that's going to create a lot of unintended results."