Ordinance Officer Report

Anita Weston, Reporter

Rich Civic Times 

GARDEN CITY, Utah. May 12, 2016.  Robert Peterson, Garden City Ordinance Officer, reported that short term rentals have become an interesting issue within the State of Utah.  The state conducted a survey of the top 50 cities and received the response that they did not have any short term rentals.  Thus, the legislature decided to create a law that Utah doesn’t allow short term rentals.  However, as soon as this information became public, the State was accused of being anti-business.

As further research was done, it was discovered that 92 percent of all cities do allow short term rentals.  The default has to be no restrictions in most of these cases. Most cities do not have any regulations or controls.  There is a large effect on land use.  The issue is really very complicated.  After the State become more aware of short term rentals, they backed off.  Eleven of twenty-four cities were asked to be part of a task force.  The League of Cities noted that the ordinances written and enforced in Garden City are the strongest found in the State of Utah.

When Garden City is compared with the other cities in Utah who have short term rentals, Garden City manages them and controls them well.  Garden City uses a three prong approach—they have good enforcement, they have a strong ordinance that is in writing, and they use software to keep track of what is happening.  Garden City also uses a warning on a first infraction, and sharper warning on a second infraction, and the license is pulled on the third infraction.  As a result of Garden City’s efforts in this area, Bob Peterson has been asked to serve on the state advisory board.

The League of Cities has copied Garden City’s ordinance and shared it with most of the cities that do have short-term rentals.

Peterson noted that he is now carrying his ordinance enforcement telephone as we get closer to summer.  He announced that there are 50 people who work in the computer software area.  They will be in town and would like to do a service to the community while they are here.  They will be taken to the beach to pick up trash.  They will spend about two hours on this project.

This summer Garden City is going to attempt to follow the sign ordinance and clean up many of the lots that have trash and don’t look very good.  Letters will be sent to retailers asking them to please comply with the sign ordinance.  We are starting to see lots of banners, more than two signs, and other infractions.

With the trash project Peterson will be taking photographs of yards and will be sending letters to the owners asking them to clean up their property.  There are fines already in place for both of the above infractions—signs and litter.