The city has struggled to bring a proliferation of renegade bed-and-breakfast operations in residential neighborhoods under control since a moratorium was enacted nearly 20 years ago. The City Council should approve a proposal to legalize those and other short-term rentals with restrictions that would keep them from dominating a neighborhood.

That domination already exists in some residential areas, such as parts of Kailua and Lanikai, and should not be allowed to persist. The proposed ordinance before the Council would restore residential atmospheres by requiring a separation of 500 feet between bed-and-breakfast homes - rental of bedrooms - and/or “;transient vacation units”; - entire houses for short-term rent.

That might force some operations to shut down, and those that have been licensed to operate should be given priority to remain in business. Renegade operations should not benefit by shutting down next-door operations that have complied with licensing laws.

The city banned such uses in neighborhoods in 1989, grandfathering and issuing permits for 141 then-existing rentals on Oahu. Those licensed units have dwindled to 100, but the number of unpermitted operations has swelled. An Internet search three years ago found 333 B&Bs in Kailua alone. A state study found more than 3,000 online advertisements for short-term rentals, twice the number certified.

The proposal before the Council also prohibits cooking in B&B rooms and separate kitchens for guests, and requires guest rooms to be equipped with smoke detectors and fire extinguishers. A requirement that would have allowed half the homeowners in lots within 300 feet of the proposed B&B to block it has been deleted from the bill.

The bill that was presented last February also has been changed to require owners to provide more information in their advertisements, such as street addresses of the units. Also, a guest room must not be in the basement.

Some Council members have described the current bill as overly restrictive, but its purpose should be to bring now unlicensed and unacceptable activity under control, not to facilitate it. Henry Eng, city director of permitting and planning, suggests a need for “;more stringent regulations so we can more successfully enforce the code that exists.”;

Angie Larson, president of the Hawaii Vacation Rental Owners Association, says her organization is “;ready to take on more regulation as long as it's fair and reasonable.”; The present bill meets those criteria.