East Peoria has reversed its decision on this controversial Airbnb property
An East Peoria Airbnb located at 108 Carroll Street will be allowed to operate after all.
The East Peoria City Council reversed its previous decision to bar the Airbnb from operating in a 3-2 vote Tuesday night in which the council ruled, despite the concerns of a neighbor, the property can operate as a short-term rental.
Once again, the story around the Airbnb heard by the council included the owners of the property, Nate and Rebecca Huskins, and their disgruntled neighbors, Tim and Lisa Arrowsmith. Neither side changed its stance Tuesday night. The Huskinses wanted their Airbnb to operate, and the Arrowsmiths wanted it gone.
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Both parties have accused the other of being dishonest about the state of the Airbnb. Yet, at Tuesday night's council meeting, a new cast of characters entered the fray — this time a pair of neighbors who said they have never seen anything happen at 108 Carroll Street to substantiate complaints made by the Arrowsmiths.
Amber Burton, who lives down the street from the 108 Carroll Street short-term rental, said the home was "run down" before Rebecca Huskins bought and renovated it and said the improvements made to the property have probably raised property values in the neighborhood, not lowered them like the Arrowsmiths argued.
Burton, too, made a point to estimate that 80% of the homes in the neighborhood have dogs living at them, some of which bark and leave their yards from time to time. This statement was made to counter a complaint from the Arrowsmiths that the Airbnb had an issue with barking dogs.
Becky Harper, the Airbnb's other neighbor who spoke to the council, said she has never seen any of the negative instances the Arrowsmiths alleged have occurred at 108 Carroll Street, specifically loud unruly guests or barking dogs.
The Arrowsmiths, however, held to their argument that this rental has no place in their neighborhood. Tim Arrowsmith went so far as to say if he had a more prominent last name or lived in a wealthier neighborhood, there would be no way the council would approve the Airbnb.
To that point, councilmembers took offense. Councilmember Seth Mingus retorted to Arrowsmith that the council has consistently voted 4-1, with Mayor John Kahl being the only consistent no vote, on Airbnbs in the city.
Arrowsmith also wanted to know who would pay the losses he and his wife would take when they sell their home for less than they bought it for because there is an Airbnb next door.
"My question is to you guys — who is going to pay my losses? When I lose $10,000, $20,000 on my home because there is a motel next door, is it going to be the LLC shelling me out money or is it going to be the city of East Peoria giving me money because you're the ones allowing these commercial businesses in the neighborhood?" Tim Arrowsmith asked the council.
Kahl and city councilmember Daniel Decker were the two "no" votes on the Airbnb. Kahl said his no vote was not personal but was rather based in his long-held belief that short-term rentals have no place in East Peoria.
Decker's "no" vote was again based on his feeling that Airbnbs took too much business away from the hotels and motels in the city that have made significant financial investments and must follow stringent codes.
Decker, too, wants the city to move ahead in a moratorium on short-term rentals and figure out the parameters for them before he makes any more "yes" votes on properties.
Councilmember Seth Mingus, who brought the Airbnb back to the council for consideration, said he wanted to reconsider the vote because city staff may not have communicated well enough with the Huskinses before the original vote in October.
Mingus and councilmember Michael Sutherland both voted "no" on the Airbnb the first time because the Huskinses were not present at the meeting. The Huskinses said they weren't at the first meeting because they did not know it was happening and told the Journal Star that communication with the city had been less than ideal.
Mingus also believed city staff had dropped the ball in communicating with the Huskinses and wanted to give them a chance to appear before the council for a vote.
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Sutherland voted "yes" partly because the Huskinses are local owners of the Airbnb, adding that he did not want to see out-of-town owners start operating Airbnbs in East Peoria.
Councilmember Mark Hill said in response to Decker that the impact of East Peoria's 11 operating short-term rentals would be minimal to the city's hotels and did not think that argument should factor into the council's decision.
Hill, too, said he had serious issues with the aggressive signage the Arrowsmiths had put up in their yard facing the Airbnb which read things such as "you are no longer trespassing you are a target."
Ultimately, the council voted to approve the Airbnb at 108 Carroll Street but will continue working on an ordinance for new on short-term rentals. A current six-month moratorium puts a halt on new rentals until the council approves regulations.
This article originally appeared on Journal Star: East Peoria will allow Airbnb to operate at 108 Carroll Street
