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Cook County Commissioners voted unanimously to accept amendments to the three-year-old Vacation Rental Ordinance proposed by the Vacation Rental Committee at the board’s November 22 meeting.
The amended ordinance will go into effect on January 1, 2023.
Commissioners also entered into an updated agreement with Granicus (Host Compliance), which has a web-based platform used to administer and enforce the Vacation Rental Licensing Program. Granicus will be paid $35,922.61, which will be funded through the vacation rental licensing fees.
Under the new amendment vacation rental license fees will double, from $200 to $400. The increase will more than adequately cover the costs of the new agreement, and will provide the Auditor’s Office with an excellent tool in the collection of the respective lodging taxes, said Cook County Land Commissioner Tim Nelson.
As stated, “The ordinance allows for the continued use of private vacation rental homes in identified zone districts but also helps to mitigate possible adverse impacts to health, safety, and welfare surrounding properties through the establishment of a licensing program for the review and approval of vacation rental home operations.”
Some updates to the ordinance include having someone available within three hours of a call about a problem, having an informational placard conspicuously placed on the rental with names of the license holder, emergency phone contact, address, etc., along with the use of water, septic system and waste disposal, and the rental shall not be transferrable upon change of ownership of the property.
North Shore Waste requests a letter of support
Commissioners sent a letter of support for North Shore Waste’s request for a $500,000 grant from the Iron Range Resources and Rehabilitation Board (IRRRB) to help fund the expansion of waste collection and the transfer station.
Among other things, the letter of support stated, “North Shore Waste provides an essential service, the cost of which would otherwise be shifted to Cook County taxpayers if the County were responsible for collecting and managing solid waste.”
Last fall, North Shore Waste announced an ambitious five-year plan to improve the efficiency and environmental impact of its waste processing facilities and operations. To accomplish this goal, North Shore Waste plans to utilize solar energy and electric vehicles to power their work in the future – mitigating the impact of rising fuel costs on Cook County residents and businesses while reducing the environmental impact of current operations.
The first stage is to build a 24,000-square-foot transfer station powered by solar panels. Hopes are to break ground on that building as soon as next summer, but that will depend partly on getting the $500,000 infrastructure grant from the IRRRB.
The second stage involves reducing 20 percent of the area’s solid waste by creating a commercial compost. Then, instead of hauling that solid waste to a Duluth landfill, that product will stay in the county and create black dirt, which is like gold in a county filled with rocks and thin topsoils.
The third phase is to transition NSW garbage hauling trucks to electric vehicles that operate off the power created by the solar panels on the transfer station.
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