Village of Great Neck Estates residents who rent out their homes using websites like Airbnb may soon be prohibited from doing so, with the village’s Board of Trustees seeking to eliminate the short-term rentals of village residences.
The proposed law, which was discussed in a public hearing at last month’s board meeting, would prohibit homeowners from renting their homes for fewer than 60 days.
“I don’t think anybody wants to see a house used by somebody on weekends,” Village of Great Neck Estates Mayor David Fox said. “We don’t want a party house. We don’t want to be cleaning up anybody else’s trash.”
Village officials said transient rentals would impact residents’ quality of life and “decrease the inventory” of available long-term rentals in the village.
“I think the potential abuses of our community far outweigh the advantages that the homeowner now enjoys,” Deputy Mayor William Warner said.
But while the board said they believed the proposed law would benefit the village, one resident told the board she found it “restrictive.”
“I think that what you are doing is taking away a substantial property right,” a Clover Drive resident said at last month’s meeting. “I’m a homeowner and I should have the ability to assign my house, to sell my house, to alienate my house in any way I want.”
Instead, she said, the village should impose a registration fee for homeowners interested in subletting their homes for short periods of time and impose inspection requirements regarding safety and fire management.
Village officials have voiced concerns about short-term rental websites not requiring any life safety or fire safety measures, which could endanger “the safety of occupants and renters, and neighbors.”
Trustee Howard Hershenhorn said he wanted more research on what other municipalities have done in regards to short-term rentals after hearing resident concerns.
“It’s a rational, logical concern that I haven’t really thought of in the past because we hadn’t heard opposition to it and sounded like it made sense based on what we did know about it,” Hershenhorn said.
Trustees will again open the public hearing on May 9 at its next board meeting, which begins at 8 p.m.
