Letter to the editor

Short-term rentals (STRs) such as Airbnb and VRBO are an issue in the Regional District of East Kootenay. 

To address the issue, the RDEK approved a system of Temporary Use Permits (TUPs) in July 2023 and implemented it in October 2023. From the reaction of Area F residents at the June 25 Town Hall meeting in Windermere, the system is not working.

 We heard from:

 • A businesswoman who houses employees in her home because there is no affordable housing

• An older man who has had to call the police three times due rowdy behaviour at an adjacent STR.

• Hotel operators who can’t find housing for staff and unlike STR owners, pay business taxes, charge tourism taxes, and create and support community initiatives.

• A teacher who had to resign because his long-term rental was sold to be a short-term rental and he couldn’t find housing.

• A group of residents who submitted 11 letters of protest about a TUP application which was subsequently approved.

• Many who wish RDEK had chosen to follow the provincial legislation limiting STRs to primary residences.

 We live in Fairmont where 134 properties are listed on Airbnb. Only five of them have applied for a TUP. We live near one such house. Its large deck, bright lighting, hot tub and sound system attracts partiers who drink and swear until late, occasionally throw rocks at deer and leave out garbage that attracts bears. It rents for $750 per night and it’s busy all summer.

 The owner lives in Calgary, uses a property manager, and pays no business tax. Like most STR owners, he hasn’t even applied for a permit and why would he? There are no deadlines to apply or consequences for not applying for this $1000 piece of paper. Almost a year after the policy was approved, there still are no consequences. For those who do apply, the district has rubber stamped every applicant, no matter the number or nature of complaints that have been made.

While short-term rentals bring in tourists who support local businesses, their impact on communities cannot be understated. First, they make property unaffordable. After all, it’s more profitable to run an STR than a long-term rental, so there are fewer places to rent. When single family homes become revenue-generating machines, property values increase to the point home ownership becomes unattainable for many.

Second, short-term rentals change the very nature of communities. Our communities were designed for families. They have been enhanced with tax dollars and volunteer work to include parks and walking trails and bike paths and libraries and community gardens and waterside facilities. As former homes become a revenue stream for absentee investors, our neighbourhoods see an unending stream of holidaymakers who use this infrastructure, often with no recognition of community standards or respect for the way of life we have built.

We wonder why the RDEK’s board of directors is so keen to accept unlimited numbers of short-term rentals. We wonder why they have designed a permit process with no enforcement measures. Don’t they care about the quality of life of the people who elect them? Do they own short-term rentals? Would they be negatively impacted financially should they implement a STR policy like that of the provincial government that requires that the STR also be the primary place of residence?

Studies have determined that social connections are an important, maybe the most important factor impacting community happiness. How can that happen if your ‘neighbour’ changes every three days? 

A balance needs to be found between making money and community well-being, but what’s the right balance? We see the balance tipping away from those who built our communities. We see the essence of our friendly mountain communities disappearing in the interests of the wealthy few.

What kind of communities do we want? Ones filled with short-term rentals that are owned by absentee investors and guests with no emotional or monetary investment in the community? Or ones where people know their neighbours, depend on them in times of crisis, rally together to build and maintain trails, and volunteer for events like Wings Across the Rockies and FireSmart?

What kind of communities do we want? It’s a question that needs to be answered before it’s too late.

Len and Nicola Ramsey, Fairmont Hot Springs