Buellton council gives first reading to ordinance requiring reversion of some long-term motel units to short-term rentals

The Buellton City Council on March 12 gave an initial, unanimous first reading to Ordinance No. 26-03, a measure that would add hotel-operator registration requirements and require the conversion or reversion of certain properties on the Avenue of Flags back to short-term rental use.

Staff framed the ordinance as the final step in a multiyear effort to support revitalization of the Avenue of Flags. Planning Director Andrea Kiefer told the council the city revised the draft to respond to the state Department of Housing and Community Development, including making extensions for qualifying residents a non-discretionary process: "We struck out the word 'may' and included the word 'shall' when discussing the extension being granted for those that are on the wait list," Kiefer said, calling the extension a ministerial act when documented wait-list status is provided.

Opponents at the public hearing warned of displacement. Jerry Moriarty, co-owner of the Farmhouse Apartments, said the ordinance would remove 22 low-income units and "you'll be displacing 22 low-income individuals and families," and predicted the city would face litigation if it moved ahead as written. Matt Carlson, counsel for the property owners, told the council the measure "is gentrification by policy," saying it offers no firm commitments to relocation assistance for tenants and urged the council to fund relocations or bar displacement until rehousing is secured.

A tenant who lives at the Farmhouse described household compositions at the property and said many residents are unlikely to qualify for or access affordable units on regional wait lists: "We got two families, Hispanic families with three kids each... and one old guy in a wheelchair who says he's too old to move," the resident said.

Under staff's timetable, if the council adopts the ordinance at second reading the measure would take effect 30 days after adoption and then property owners would have six months from that effective date to revert motel units to short-term occupancy. Residents who document placement on an area housing authority wait list would be eligible for an extension (the staff description outlined additional time that can result in up to roughly two years from the ordinance effective date for some tenants).

The council voted to give the ordinance its first reading; staff said it will return for second reading at a future meeting and is likely to appear on a consent calendar for final adoption. The motion passed with the council recording aye votes from the council majority present.