Jon Shapiro said he was one of the first people to start renting out his property in Grover Beach for short-term stays. It’s a popular trend worldwide that led to the rise of websites like Airbnb and Vrbo, where travelers can find places to stay.
“It was a jumble of weeds and we've made it lovely. So I'm proud of what we have done with the neighborhood,” Shapiro said.
These short-term rentals, also known as STRs, have been allowed in Grover Beach since June 2019. The city worked with residents and property owners to create guidelines, including a brochure to guide visitors on how to be good neighbors.
“Year over year, staff [has been] dedicated to kind of doing a self-audit to ensure that it's functioning properly, that we're managing things efficiently, and that there's satisfaction in the community," Megan Martin, Grover Beach Community Development Director said.
Shapiro says his experience reflects this.
“We've never had any complaints from our neighbors. Our neighbors have been very appreciative and helpful and thanked us for fixing the house up. The cops have never been called….” Shapiro said.
Kellie Greenelsh lives near some STR’s in Grover Beach and agrees that at least in her experience, the visitors haven’t caused problems.
“These don’t seem to be booked all that often, and the people who been there have been very quiet and respectful, there haven’t been any issues," Greenelsh said.
The City reports that more than 100 short-term rentals in Grover Beach have brought in over $1.5 million in tax revenue. Shapiro points out how he believes his rental is also helping the city.
"This house sleeps up until eight," Shapiro said. "So that's a lot of people going to the restaurants and we're occupied probably 75% of the time. So that's it's all it's many, many thousands of dollars going into the local community.”
As the city continues to expand on its STR ordinance, staff recently updated the rules to match state laws.
"One of the key pieces to that is our accessory dwelling unit requirements," Martin explained. "State law requires accessory dwelling units or ADU's to be rented for at least 30 days. Short-term rental is less than 30. So we had to clean up some of the language within our ordinance.”
In addition, the city had to:
- Establish a limit on STR waitlist properties to speed up the process and keep people from taking advantage of it.
- And extend the time required from 30 to 45 minutes for a responsible party to be on-site following a complaint.
It’s something Shapiro thinks is a good idea.
"Every once in a while we'll be in San Luis having dinner. And I suppose if there was a complaint....a half hour might be a little bit tight to finish up dinner and run over here and speak to the police. So yeah, 45 minutes is appropriate…” Shapiro said.
The City Council recently approved the changes to the ordinance. It will go before the California Coastal Commission next for final approval.
