Please sign up by Aug 13th at 5pm to make public comment at the meeting. Here is a link to submit your request: https://www.coastal.ca.gov/meetings/request-testimony/wednesday/

Please submit by Aug 8th for written public comment. Address your email to: Executivestaff@coastal.ca.gov (This will ensure it gets into all commissioners packets)

If you would like to email individual commissioners here is a list:

CommissionerETurnbull-Sanders@coastal.ca.gov

CommissionerDBochco@coastal.ca.gov

CommissionerCHart@coastal.ca.gov

CommissionerSLowenberg@coastal.ca.gov

CommissionerANotthoff@coastal.ca.gov

CommissionerLEscalante@coastal.ca.gov

CommissionerMWilson@coastal.ca.gov

CommissionerAKelley@coastal.ca.gov

CommissionerJPreciado@coastal.ca.gov

CommissionerMHarmon@coastal.ca.gov

CommissionerRJackson@coastal.ca.gov

CommissionerCLopez@coastal.ca.gov

CommissionerMHarmon@coastal.ca.gov

Summary Points to Consider

Please request the commission remove the allowance for limited vacation rentals in Big Sur.

LIMITED VACATION RENTALS WON’T BE MONITORED OR ENFORCED BY MONTEREY COUNTY: KBSW questions why, if an uncapped number of “Limited” vacation rentals of three per year is allowed, there would be a need for an “operator” (not the actual owner), to run the rental. Hiring an operator inherently implies a more intensive use and need for management. Since Monterey County has admitted (as referenced in the CCC’s staff report) that no enforcement would occur unless it involves an immediate threat to health and safety, there will be no monitoring of this limit and it is highly unlikely that an owner would ever be present.  This is how the LLCs operate; they invest in a property, hire a manager, and rent it out. LACK OF ENFORCEMENT: KBSW has formally reported illegal STRs operating in residentially zoned areas that are used as commercial event centers for years, as well as outright illegal vacation rentals, and the County has done literally nothing to enforce them.

DEDICATED ENFORCEMENT PERSONNEL ARE REQUIRED TO ENSURE ORDINANCE RESTRICTIONS ARE IMPLEMENTED: Other jurisdictions, such as the City of Santa Barbara, have hired enforcement personnel SPECIFIC to monitoring and fining illegal vacation rentals with great success, both from a financial perspective and in keeping them in check. The Commission should ensure that a functional mechanism is in place to enforce the limitations they approve.

THE BIG SUR LAND USE PLAN IS CURRENTLY UNDERGOING A REVISION AND THIS ISSUE IS RELEVANT TO THE PLAN UPDATE: The BSLUP is currently under review for a revision and update, and one of the core tenets of the BSLUP is a limit on the number of visitor serving units in the area.  The County should not be allowed to collect TOT on “Limited” rentals and NOT count them towards the existing Visitor-Serving Unit cap, which has already been exceeded. Further, all vacation rentals in Big Sur should be prohibited until such time the VSU numbers are established and approved in the BSLUP update.

VACATION RENTALS IN REMOTE AREAS PRESENT REAL SAFETY THREATS ON RURAL ROADS: Big Sur vacation rentals are often in remote areas on hilltops with one-lane, dead end roads and places with gate codes and limited access. In the event of an emergency, vacation renters would be unfamiliar with proper evacuation routes and could potentially endanger year-round residents.