Summary
April 5, 2024
California Coastal Commission
45 Fremont Street, Suite 2000
San Francisco, CA 94105
Dear Chair Hart,
On behalf of the Marin County Board of Supervisors, I write to express our support for the County of Marin’s Local Coastal Program Amendment application for new short-term rental policies and regulations, and urge the Commission to adopt the regulations as submitted.
The County first adopted short-term rental (STR) regulations for unincorporated areas (including the Coastal Zone) in 2018, requiring a Business License, Transient Occupancy Tax Certificate and establishing “good neighbor” policies. In 2022, the County adopted a moratorium on new licenses for STRs, and since then has been working on new policies and regulations for the STR Ordinance. Our Board adopted new policies and regulations on January 11, 2024, however these must also be approved by the Coastal Commission – and then subsequently returned to our Board for final adoption before the existing local moratorium expires on May 23, 2024.
Management of STRs is consistent with both the County's Housing Element and Local Coastal Program (LCP), as STRs have potential impacts on housing supply, community workforce, and public safety. Some of the guiding principles in our process to develop policies included: prioritizing housing supply and affordability and considering regulations in light of their effects on the cost and availability of housing within individual communities; advancing equity in access to economic opportunities, services and activities; recognizing that Marin has historically provided vacation opportunities to the greater Bay Area region and State; and considering environmental constraints such as water and sewage capacity; among others.
During the multi-year process, the County conducted extensive public outreach, including dozens of public meetings, a countywide survey with 2,400 responses, facilitated group discussions, stakeholder interviews, and two Planning Commission workshops.
On January 11, 2024, our Board voted to approve County staff-recommended policies and regulations for STRs, and authorized the Community Development Agency to submit them as a Local Coastal Program Amendment to the Coastal Commission. This proposal before you includes regulations that will protect the health and well-being of visitors, and provide a maximum allowance of licenses within coastal areas to balance commercial operations within residential areas.
We are grateful for the community engagement and expression throughout the process and hope the Commission will see this in the proposed updates for your consideration.
Sincerely,
Dennis Rodoni, President
Marin County Board of Supervisors
Cc: Marin County Board of Supervisors
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