By Steve Hubrecht
Short-term rentals (STRs) continue to generate plenty of attention in Invermere.
For the second time in a row, a number of local residents concerned about the District of Invermere’s new STR regulations turned out at a council meeting to press councillors on the issue.
At the Tuesday, Sept. 24 meeting the public gallery was almost completely full. About half the audience was to talk about STRs. Fort Point residents Joan and John Rouse pointed out, as they had the Tuesday, Sept. 10 council meeting, that there are now 15 homes being run as STRs in their neighbourhood. Joan noted that equates to 10 per cent of all homes in Fort Point, and asked again if there would be any follow-up on these concerns. She also asked how many STR owners and operators in total had been granted a temporary use permit (TUP) without the matter appearing before council for a decision. (TUP applications only come to council for a decision if the STR does not comply with the district’s new STR rules, for instance if the STR owners want to have more guests than the maximum of eight stipulated in Invermere’s regulations.)
Invermere planner Rory Hromadnik replied that the district has received about 80 STR applications, adding he wasn’t entirely sure how many of those have been approved yet, and how many are still to be processed. He clarified that “the only trigger for (district) staff not to approve (a TUP application for an STR) is if there is something out of the ordinary.”
Hromadnik said there have been plenty of concerns about STRs eroding the character of the community, but noted council has already set Invermere’s STR regulations. “Those decisions have been made . . . if you (as a TUP applicant) comply with the regulations, there is no reason not to approve it (the TUP application). That is the foundation I must operate on (as district staff),” he explained.
Fort Point resident Lorna Pollock spoke next, noting that, as per provincial STR regulations that also came into effect in May, many British Columbia municipalities now have a principal residence requirement for STR owners and operators (meaning the STR owners or operators must live on the property being rented as an STR).
Pollock acknowledged that all municipalities with populations under 5,000 or that are one of BC’s 14 designated resort municipalities are specifically exempt from these rules. (Invermere is doubly exempt: the population is 3,900 and —when combined with Panorama Mountain Resort — it is a designated resort municipality). But she pointed out that at least one designated resort municipality (Tofino) has decided to opt into the provincial STR regulations, including the primary residence requirement, despite exempt, as have some BC municipalities with populations under 5,000, such as Okanagan Falls.
Pollock also outlined that while only Tofino has fully opted in to the provincial STR regulations, 11 of BC’s 14 designated resort municipalities have developed some sort of partial principal residence rules of their own. The only three of the 14 with no principal residence requirement for STRs anywhere in the municipality are Invermere-Panorama, Radium Hot Springs and Sun Peaks, she pointed out.
“These (other) 11 towns are taking action . . . why is Invermere not doing this? It would be very easy to make primary residence a stipulation in the TUP application,” said Pollock.
She also wondered what metrics councillors use to evaluate Invermere’s STR rules, asking “what are you tracking to make sure this is working?”
Pollock expressed concern about outside investors snapping up housing, leaving little left for locals who want to live here full time. She added that when she first bought a home in Invermere she never imagined “I would be living in a neighbourhood of boutique hotels.”
Councillor Gerry Taft replied that many second homes in Invermere belong to people who own just two homes, not multiple homes. “I don’t know if owning one second home makes you an investor,” said Taft. He added that if Invermere severely restricts STRs, there will be fewer tourists and local business and Invermere’s downtown core could be hurt.
In terms of tracking, both Taft and Hromadnik explained that the district has hired digital services company Granicus, which will monitor Invermere STRs advertising on rental platforms (such as AirBnB, VRBO, and others) and double check whether or not the STRs have the required business licences and TUPs. If they don’t, an automatic discipline letter will be sent, and the rental platforms (AirBnB, VRBO, and others) will pull that STR’s advertisements from their sites.
But this is not a system that can begin functioning overnight, cautioned Taft. “It takes some time to work through these (TUP) applications. It takes some time to onboard Granicus . . . we’ll get that real data, but it will take some time.”
Invermere councillor Kayja Becker added, “We’re optimistic to see how that (Granicus) turns out. Trusting people (STR owners) to get their applications in on their own has not worked . . . we didn’t get the huge influx of applications I was expecting in May (when the district’s new STR regulation also came into effect).”
Taft noted that Invermere is not the only municipal entity with a lack of uptake in STR/TUP applications. The Regional District of East Kootenay (RDEK — including Area F and Area G (both part of the Columbia Valley) — adopted its STR regulations in 2023. But the RDEK has only received 120 STR/TUP applications so far, outlined Taft, adding there are clearly many more STRs operating within the RDEK.
Becker noted that residents concerned about STRs have come to two council meetings in a row. They’ve had some good suggestions, she said, but added that council isn’t ready to implement any of those just yet. The still-new STR regulations took two years to develop, and council wants to give these a chance, and see how they work before possibly refining them, explained Becker.
She added that it is important, however, for council to regularly check in and assess how the rules are working. To that end, she suggested council consider an annual review on its STR rules.
John Rouse suggested that perhaps a lot of concern over STRs among residents could be allayed if district staff or council regularly reported to the public on the STR situation, for instance, letting them know how many STR TUPs have been approved, where those STRs are located, what STR complaints have been filed, and what steps have been taken to deal with those complaints.
