Madison’s Common Council adopted new regulations to the citywide zoning code Tuesday in order to facilitate the sustainability of the tourist housing market without jeopardizing the stability of existing family neighborhoods.
With the adoption of the new ordinance, city residents looking to rent out spare rooms to tourists as part of any Internet-based rental system, such as Airbnb, must pay a room tax to the city.
“There are purposes to this regulation, and one of them has to do with the quality of the environment,” Madison Mayor Paul Soglin said.
Echoing the mayor’s sentiment, Ald. Marsha Rummel, District 9, said the newly created room tax will hopefully prevent longstanding residential neighborhoods from getting “chopped up” into tourist rentals.
City zoning codes previously stipulated that traditional tourist housing options, such as hostels or lodging houses, were conditional on a case-by-case basis, provided that the establishment met health and building standards as well as specific neighborhood ordinances.
However, the increasing popularity of less traditional short-term room rentals fell outside existing city codes. Madison zoning administrator Matt Tucker said this growing practice of an internet-based, Craigslist-type market presented a blind spot in the city codes that was necessary for ordinances to address.
“What we did tonight wasn’t really earth-shattering; it’s a compromise,” Ald. Mike Verveer, District 4, said.
Public testifiers, however, were less satisfied with the Council’s decision. They instead argued that fewer regulations would be preferable.
“We do not want to be seen as this high-regulation area,” said Joe Sweeney, CEO of 100state, an organization dedicated to fostering community innovation.
Ald. Scott Resnick, District 8, agreed, and highlighted the economic benefits that tourist housing brings to the city.
“What we need to do is really work alongside with Airbnb owners. The sharing economy isn’t going away,” Resnick said. “I really hope that we are able to start talking about how we can be more creative with our laws.”
