Council raises permit fees for vacation-home rentals

An increase to vacation-home rental permit fees was approved by the South Lake Tahoe City Council on Tuesday.

Fees for new vacation-rental permits will increase from $75 to $205, and fees for renewing permits will increase from $50 to $140 per year.

The increased fees will pay for an additional community service officer to enforce the city's vacation-rental rules.

"The annual cost to fully fund the new community services officer position, including salary, benefits, vehicle and equipment, is $108,000 per year," according to a memo from city Finance Director Christine Vuletich.

County resident Wayne Huber lauded the council's push for greater enforcement of the vacation-rental ordinance and hoped similar enforcement will occur outside city limits.

Huber was the only member of the public to speak on the subject during Tuesday's meeting.

Councilman Ted Long said the issues of excessive noise, trash collection and parking are not exclusive to vacation rentals.

Although supportive of the fee increase, Long expressed a concern that residents who have these types of problems with non-vacation-rental properties will not "reap the benefits of this officer."

"The problems aren't going to get addressed across the board," Long said.

The fee increase was approved by a 4-0 vote, with Mayor Mike Weber abstaining.

Also during the meeting, the City Council gave initial approval to new sign requirements for vacation-rental properties within city limits.

The amendment will require vacation-home rentals to have exterior signs clearly visible from the street stating the maximum number of occupants permitted to stay overnight in the unit, the maximum number of cars that can be parked on site and contact information for the police department.

The new sign requirements will return for final approval at the City Council's next meeting Sept. 23. With final approval, the sign requirement would take effect Nov. 1.

The new sign requirement is one of several changes approved over the summer to the city's vacation-rental rules.

Response to grand jury probe of police department approved

Without discussion, the South Lake Tahoe City Council approved a response to an El Dorado County Grand Jury report that was critical of South Lake Tahoe Police Department management.

Approval of the response was included on the consent calendar of Tuesday's meeting agenda, typically reserved for noncontroversial items that often are approved at the same time.

The response - written by City Manager David Jinkens - finds there is not enough information in the grand jury's report "to draw any conclusions" about an allegation that Police Chief Terry Daniels acted inappropriately during a verbal confrontation with a South Shore resident in 2006.

The city's response - a legal requirement after a grand jury investigation - agrees to several of the grand jury's recommendations, including a suggestion police department management attend additional training and that Daniels develop three- and five-year strategic plans for the department. The grand jury's report was released in late June.