Sister Bay May 16 at 6 PM
We have now received the written proposed changes to the STR ordinance and they are worse than the Village Administrator described verbally a few days ago. (See page 24 for the STR section of the packet.)
These are being presented to and potentially voted on by the Village Board this coming Tuesday. We need STR owners to SHOW UP at the Village Board meeting. It is available via Zoom but it’s really important for people to be there in person as well. Please let us know if you are able to attend in person at: homehostsdoorco@gmail.com
Because this ordinance was published late Friday afternoon, it’s imperative we write to the Village Board to ensure they know what is in this ordinance. Here are some highlights listing the specific ordinance codes.
The highlights are:
~7/180: We need to stay focused on objecting to the 7 day/180 consecutive day restriction. We ask this is the top priority in your letters. There’s lots of other things to distract us and they are very onerous, and we will object to them, but the 7/180 will cut off most guests’ ability to stay in your home.
- The way the ordinance is written, you are NOT ALLOWED to rent for LESS than 7 days. This is more restrictive than the Sevastopol ordinance which is one rental every 7 days.
- The limit of 180 consecutive days starts on your first rental of the 365 day year. It’s not days rented in a year. Once you rent, 180 days from then, you can’t rent again until the 365 day period is over. (See language in ordinance. See the sample letter on Home Hosts website for effective talking points about this.
~Resident agent If you use an agent for problem resolution, they must only live in specified towns: Sister Bay, Ephraim, Bailey’s Harbor, Gibraltar, or Liberty Grove
~LLC: An STR can not be owned by an LLC or other type of legal entity.
~Only One STR: One owner can only hold one STR license.
~2 year moratorium: If you buy a home and want to be an STR, you have to live in it for two years or rent it to a Sister Bay resident, for 24 months before it can be licensed to become an STR. This applies going forward, not to existing STRs we believe.
~Pets: You are required to ensure any pets on the property are current on their vaccinations
~Required to Donate or Volunteer in Sister Bay
~Commercial Insurance required
~DATCP: If state inspectors are not able to keep up with inspections or have done them via video, you are required to hire a private home inspector, have all corrective actions resolved, and submit a report to get your annual Sister Bay license. (Conversely, DATCAP will issue a conditional license if violations are not serious and give the homeowner a reasonable time to fix the violation.)
Details on meeting:
Tuesday, May 16 at 6 PM
Sister Bay-Liberty Grove Fire Station – Large Meeting Room
2258 Mill Road, Sister Bay, Wisconsin
Click Here for the AGENDA and PACKET
Action needed:
- Join our Sister Bay Action Team by contacting Holli Kohls at homehostsdoorco@gmail.com
- If you are in Sister Bay, attend the Village Board Meeting. Here is the zoom link.
- Share your perspective and ask for support from local business and arts organizations AND contact board members if you are not able to attend the board meeting.
- Learn more about what Home Hosts is doing to represent STR owner’s with local governments. Become a member of Home Hosts. We take a partnership approach with towns and villages, but if they break the law, we will take legal action to stop them.