WEEK 3 FAQs |
Short Term Rentals ZOAM |
| What do organizations and residents need to understand about the Short Term Rentals ZOAM-2018-0001? | Mainly, the zoning ordinance amendment (ZOAM) for Short Term Residential Rentals (STRR) and Commercial Whole House (CWH) Rentals recommends new regulations for all areas of the county.
These type uses are not currently permitted in the county, although per County Staff, zoning complaints for violations are on hold until this ZOAM is implemented. |
| Is this part of the Zoning Ordinance Rewrite? | It is a parallel effort with the Zoning Ordinance Rewrite (ZOR) to provide additional focus and community outreach that will be incorporated in ZOR when completed. |
| What’s the difference between “STRR” and “CWH” rentals? | First, what is in common is that they both refer to short-term rentals defined as fewer than 30 consecutive days (i.e., not rental leases longer than 30 days).
STR – Residential Accessory refers to renting a portion of a house or accessory dwelling for less than 30 consecutive days, for no more than 180 days per calendar year. (Compare to Airbnb and VRBO.) STR – Commercial Whole-house refers to renting a non-owner-occupied single family detached house or accessory dwelling for less than 30 consecutive days, with no days per calendar year restrictions. (Compare to vacation whole-house rentals at the beach, lake, mountains, etc.) |
| What regulations are included in the draft text? | The ZOAM helps to define where short-term rentals are allowed, and how they relate to homeowner associations with bylaws.
The ZOAM also defines the quantity of overnight guests, fire safety, parking, restriction on food service, private parties, and special events for the protection of adjacent properties and neighborhoods. Commercial Whole House also requires a parcel of 5 acres or more to have more than 8 guests and a maximum of 10 guests per parcel per night. |
| How can I provide input on this ZOAM for my organization or myself? | The first step is to review County Staff’s current draft text.
The options for providing your comments include: 1. Community meetings being conducted by Staff in January and February for stakeholder organizations. Check with your organization leaders for a meeting for your group(s). 2. Orgs and residents can provide written public input to the Zoning Ordinance Committee for wide distribution and discussion. (Email to: zorewrite@loudoun.gov.) 3. Per Staff’s First Qtr 2022 workplan, residents will also be able to provide comments during Planning Commission public hearing in Second Qtr 2022 and/or to the Board of Supervisors planned for Third Qtr 2022. 4. If you do not attend a public community meeting and would like to submit comments directly to Staff sooner than public hearings, you can submit comments directly on LOLA here in the “Citizen Comments” box. |
| I was not able to attend the Short Term Residential Rentals public meetings in January 2022.
Is there a way I can provide comments now instead of waiting for the public hearings later in the year? |
ANOTHER PUBLIC MEETING conducted by County Staff will be held on Tuesday, Feb. 22nd from 6pm to 7:30pm.
How to access this electronic meeting:
You have several options to send written comments if you cannot attend a public meeting. First review County Staff’s current draft text to find section number(s) that relate to your comment or question, then: 1. Residents and Org points of contact can provide written public input to the Zoning Ordinance Committee for wide distribution and discussion. (Email to: zorewrite@loudoun.gov.) 2. If you would like to submit comments directly to Staff sooner than public hearings, you can submit comments directly on LOLA here in the “Citizen Comments” box. |
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