Airbnb-type rental policies, more on Springfield City Council agenda
Springfield City Council will meet Monday evening to discuss and vote on various city business. Here's what is on the agenda.
Short-term rental policies to undergo review
Council on Monday will consider whether to refer short-term rental policies to the Plans and Policies Committee for review. Short-term type 2 rentals, those most commonly found on Airbnb and Vrbo, have been a consistent point of discussion for council. While permits for these rentals are issued administratively, applications appear in front of council when the owner is unable to receive the necessary signatures from 55% of adjacent property owners or does not meet one of the other requirements.
Regulations on short-term rentals in Springfield have been around since 2019, but the city did not have a way to catch those operating illegally other than through complaints until recently. New software is allowing the city to have a more efficient way of finding rentals operating without being registered. In a memo to council at the Feb. 12 meeting, Director of Finance David Holtmann noted that based on the data that the software has, out of 651 identified properties 359 are unlicensed.
According to the memo, around March 1 letters will be sent out to rentals operating without a license, demanding that they cease operations and informing them of the registration process. In addition, short-term rentals are now taxed at 5% through the hotel/motel sales tax that was approved by voters in April 2022. The software will also be used to register and collect taxes from the rentals. The memo stated that about 53% of licensed properties are currently reporting for each tax period.
More: Springfield's short-term rental policy has issues. Here's how it stacks up to others in MO
Springfield's current regulations were largely modeled after regulations that at the time of approval were in effect in Kansas City. Since then, Kansas City has tightened their regulations, however. Changes include removing the signature requirement due to the large volume of rentals that would appear before council, prohibiting any additional non-occupant short-term rentals in areas zoned as residential and requiring booking platforms to remove unregistered rentals.
Because of these changes, Councilman Craig Hosmer in particular has called for Springfield regulations to be reviewed and reconsidered. Hosmer has been outspoken in his opposition to short-term rentals and the negative role they play in the housing stock across the city. Some of his council colleagues though have been supportive of the businesses as a benefit to the local economy, especially with the additional tax revenue they have the potential to generate.
When council reviewed the agenda and the item on the policy referral, Mayor Ken McClure said he felt that with several years passed since the passage of the original ordinance, it was time to review the policy, especially with how prominent the topic has become when appeals are in front of council.
Distributing carryover funds
From the last budget year, the city has almost $6.5 million in excess revenue to distribute. At the last meeting, local church leaders asked for more of this money, and more sustainable future investment, for crisis cold weather shelters.
From the $6.5 million, $100,000 is set to go toward funding crisis cold weather shelters.
Those speaking at the Feb. 12 meeting highlighted the lack of volunteers and adequate space for the number of unhoused people they serve. With the money, a pilot volunteer stipend could be on the horizon, though those on the ground agreed that full-time permanent staff would be much more effective.
More: In dire need of volunteers, local church leaders ask for more cold weather shelter money
Here is the current proposal for allocating the carryover funds that council will vote on (in descending order):
Historic City Hall Project: $4,465,810
Firefighter Self-Contained Breathing Apparatus ("SCBA") Sustainment: $1,350,000
ADA Transitional Plan Assessment: $200,000
Cooper/Killian Project Improvements: $188,000
South Creek Greenway Trail: $182,000
Crisis Cold Weather Shelter Funding: $100,000
ARPA funds for shelter
After not being selected for American Rescue Plan Act funds explicitly set aside for congregate housing, Council of Churches of the Ozarks looked for another avenue to receive monetary support for a permanent facility for Safe to Sleep from the city. Safe to Sleep is the only low-barrier shelter that has been serving exclusively women in the city, many of whom are seniors, since 2011. They currently operate out of a church gymnasium.
When they were passed over for the initial ARPA funding because their project would not add any additional beds, leaders from CCO asked council to reconsider the decision or find a new way to support their cause. The ARPA Review Committee considered allocating a portion of the leftover $2.5 million in ARPA funds to CCO. On Monday, council will have the final vote to approve $1.1 million from those funds to go toward Safe to Sleep.
Want to go?
Council meetings are held every other Monday at 6:30 p.m. at the Springfield Regional Police & Fire Training Center at 2620 W. Battlefield Rd. The meetings are also livestreamed on www.cityview.springfieldmo.gov/livestream.
The full agenda and supporting documents can be found on the city's website.
Marta Mieze covers local government at the News-Leader. Contact her with tips at mmieze@news-leader.com.
This article originally appeared on Springfield News-Leader: Springfield City Council to vote on funds, review rental policies
