By a 5-0 vote, Cook County commissioners chose to enact a vacation rental ordinance at their Tuesday, May 28 regularly scheduled board meeting.
The ordinance will go into effect January 1, 2020, and after three years it will be reviewed and revised or changed altogether if needed. The ordinance doesn’t cover the City of Grand Marais or Grand Portage.
When asked last March, Tim Nelson, director of Cook County Land Services, said, “The Vacation Rental Ordinance intends to continue the allowed use of private vacation rental homes and cabins, but also mitigate possible adverse impacts of those operations. The draft ordinance also establishes basic requirements for each rental operation such as: Ensuring the rental is appropriately licensed by the state, and that there is a local point of contact for responding to any issues or emergencies that arise, and that the lodging taxes are paid up to date.”
Although there is no dollar amount set in the ordinance, Nelson said the registration fee charged by the county would likely be in the neighborhood of $200 annually for each rental unit.
Work on forming a short-term vacation rental ordinance began in 2015 after citizens brought their concerns to the county commissioners and staff, which prompted the county board to create a vacation rental committee (VRC).
The VRC’s mission was to look at the way vacation rental operations impacted the county and then provide recommendations to the county board.
In the fall of 2018, the VRC determined that it was time to look at providing some regulatory oversight to vacation rentals. A sub-committee was formed to develop and recommend some rules that wouldn’t be burdensome on the vacation rental industry and would be streamlined so the county could manage the program with limited resources.
During the public comment period, both Mike Larson and Steve Surbaugh, co-owners of Cascade Vacation Rentals, brought a litany of concerns to the county board about implementing the new rules.
However, on May 30, the two were fully on board with the regulations and released this statement.
“In response to this ordinance, which was approved on a 5-0 vote by the Cook County Board of Commissioners on May 28, CVR understands the new oversight and regulation can work to educate certain property owners on why it is important to comply with state and local regulations pertaining to short-term rentals. In addition, the ordinance will highlight the great effort CVR ownership and staff currently place on all properties affiliated with this highly-respected business on the North Shore.
“We feel proud that the county would pass an ordinance for vacation rentals that is essentially modeled after the way we do business,” said Cascade Vacation Rentals Co-owner Steve Surbaugh. “When you look at it, the ordinance is an acknowledgement of how to legally and successfully operate a vacation rental on the North Shore of Lake Superior, something we have done for many years and will continue to do with support from Cook County.
“In order to be associated with CVR, all listed properties must be in compliance with state and local regulations, including annual inspections from the Minnesota Department of Health. In addition, every property listed under the CVR name must pay in full the local lodging tax, as we proudly support the good work these funds go toward promoting our treasured North Shore. Furthermore, we carefully maintain our managed properties with local staff and local owners, ensuring both respect for our neighbors and the community at large.”
The Cook County ordinance will officially go into effect Jan. 1, 2020. The passing of the vacation rental ordinance was the culmination of years of research by varying groups in the community, including the Vacation Rental Committee. This committee includes local elected officials, county staff, business leaders and CVR personnel.
“We worked with county staff and our elected officials through the entire process of creating this ordinance,” said Cascade Vacation Rentals Co-owner Mike Larson. “And we feel the ordinance is essentially a page right out of our guidelines for how to legitimately operate a vacation rental along the North Shore and near the Boundary Waters.”
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