To the editor: Proposed vacation rental rules overreach

Imagine a beautiful spring day in Boulder County — one of our 300 sunny days each year. It’s a perfect day for a wedding with a small group of family members and close friends at a charming cabin near Rocky Mountain National Park. 

Now imagine the owners of the property you rented receiving a $1,000 fine for simply hosting your wedding. Far-fetched? Sadly, that’s just one of a long list of overreaching and unnecessary rules currently being considered by the Boulder County Board of Commissioners to regulate how properties can be used in unincorporated Boulder County. 

Proposed changes to Article 4 of the Boulder County Land Use Code that regulate short-term dwelling rentals and bed-and-breakfast uses threaten to destroy a decades-long tradition of tourism in the area — a tradition we certainly can’t afford to lose as we strive to survive and eventually rebuild from the economic damage of COVID-19. 

Provisions in the proposed ordinance will make renting many properties in unincorporated Boulder County — some of which have been popular rental destinations for decades — nearly impossible. As noted before, the proposed rules essentially ban on all weddings occurring on rented residential property and also impose an eight-person maximum occupancy regardless of the size of the property while limiting rentals to 60 days per year per rental unit. 

While these rules only directly impact unincorporated Boulder County, it’s not a stretch to assert the economic ramifications will also affect cities like Boulder and Longmont, as visitors to unincorporated Boulder County not only rent property but visit nearby population centers to dine out, visit local attractions, rent bicycles and other equipment, purchase souvenirs to take home and more.

Tourism dollars are a critical element of the county’s economy and tax base. The history of vacation rental activity in the mountains of Boulder County goes back many generations and is linked with the proximity to Rocky Mountain National Park, which attracts more than 4 million visitors annually. Recently, the pandemic has taken a dramatic toll on Colorado’s tourism industry, with the U.S. Travel Association estimating that Colorado traveler spending has declined by 89% from the prior year. These proposed regulations would have additional negative impacts — far beyond COVID-19 — on everyone from homeowners and local business owners and restaurateurs to community residents working as cleaning staff, maintenance workers and more. Gig workers, like those driving for Uber or Lyft, would likely also be impacted.

Other problems with the proposed rules include:

• The special review/public hearing process to gain a license can take up to a year, meaning some homeowners that rely on rental income could be denied an entire season of revenue in order to comply with the new requirements. 
• The rules impose fines of up to $1,000 per day for perceived offenses, which could include a simple noise complaint or hosting a small family wedding ceremony. 
• Only one license is permitted per individual and affiliates, which means those owning more than one rental property could not qualify for more than one license. This would even impact single properties with two dwellings — a house and a cabin, for example — as a license would be required for each dwelling, but only one would be allowed. 
• The proposed ordinance’s “one-size-fits-all” approach isn’t right for unincorporated Boulder County. Rules for an isolated mountain cabin must be approached differently than a single-family home in a dense subdivision, but these rules treat all properties the same. 

Further, the proposed ordinance speaks of preserving the “character” of these neighborhoods — troubling language that is often used in housing regulations to subtly discriminate. Welcoming visitors from all over the world to enjoy the beauty of Boulder County is an important part of our character that should be preserved and celebrated, not regulated away. 

The Boulder County Board of County Commissioners is set to hold a virtual public hearing on the final adoption of these rules Thursday. Public testimony will be taken at the hearing. Information on how to attend or speak at the hearing will be posted on the county’s website before the hearing. 

I hope you’ll join me in working to preserve Boulder County’s rich tradition of tourism and the economic benefits it brings to our community and reject these overreaching, unnecessary regulations that will do further damage to our already ravaged economy. 

Rosemary Donahue

Owner of The Lone Star Cabin and Tahosa Ranch in Boulder County, which she has rented to visitors from around the world since 1990. 

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