The Metropolitan Planning Commission recommended to the Savannah City Council Thursday, a text amendment to the City of Savannah Zoning Ordinance to establish short-term residential rental as a land use in the zoning ordinance, to include a definition, zoning districts where permitted, use conditions and parking standards.

Charlotte Moore, Director of Special Projects at MPC, gave a PowerPoint® presentation to Council regarding the MPC’s recommendation, which calls for:

• Short-term Residential Rental is defined as an accommodation for transient guests where, in exchange for compensation, a residential dwelling is rented for lodging for a period of time not to exceed 30 consecutive days. Such use may or may not include an on-site manager. For the purposes of this definition, a residential dwelling shall include all housing types and shall not include group living or other lodging uses. Transient Guest is defined as a person who resides at a place other than his usual place of residence for no more than 30 consecutive days in exchange for compensation. 

• The zoning districts where the use is permitted are RIP, RIP-A, RIP-A-1, RIP-B, RIP-B-1, RIP-C, RIP-D, I-P and R-D; B-H, B-C, BC-1, B-G, B-B, R-B-C and RB-C-1; Victorian Planned Neighborhood Conservation District 1-R, 2-R and 3-R with Zoning Board of Appeals approval, and 1-B, 2-B and 3-B; and Mid-City District TN-2 interior lot and corner lot, TC-1 and TC-2.  

• The use conditions are a) the number of occupants shall not exceed two (2) adults per bedroom plus two (2) adults for each dwelling, subject to the verification of building code compliance by the Zoning Administrator; and b) there shall be no change in the exterior appearance of the dwelling and premises, or other visible evidence of the conduct of a short term residential rental.  

• The minimum space requirements for off-street parking areas for a studio up to three (3) bedrooms shall be the requirement for the type of dwelling unit; and for four (4) or more bedrooms shall be the requirement for the type of dwelling unit plus one space for each additional two (2) bedrooms. 

Zoning already has a definition for non-transient guests, which includes a requirement that the guest stay for a period of 30 or more consecutive days. However, Zoning has no official definition for a transient guest yet. MPC is asking for that definition to established officially as a guest whose stay is less than 30 consecutive days.

According to information presented by MPC, short-term rentals for transient guests would fall under a completely different zoning category to short-term vacation rentals. Members of Council expressed concern over how many transient guests per room, adults and children, would be permitted in any one facility and if the number of such facilities in a single neighborhood could be limited in order to keep a single area from being overrun with short-term guest accommodations and some of the problems that may arise, such a parking issues, neighborhood stability, and property values.

Melinda Allen, membership chair of the Savannah Downtown Neighborhood Association, testified that it was important to limit street parking in these cases. City Attorney Brooks Stillwell said that may be difficult to do from a legal standpoint. 

In a letter to Mayor Jackson and Council dated June 24 of this year, John Buckovich, president of the Savannah D.N.A., stated the following:

“Across the country, cities are dealing with the quality of life issues associated with the rise of short-term rentals. The issues associated with the increased use of residential properties for tourism related business, are significant. In a recent Downtown Neighborhood Association (DNA) membership meeting, residents voiced numerous concerns about trash, noise, disorderly behavior, parking and the inability to enjoy their property because of these issues. 

“The DNA is encouraged that the City of Savannah is taking a proactive step in confronting the issues associated with the rise of these properties in Savannah. We support the ordinance as written, with one suggested change: total occupancy should be limited to 8 people. If a property owner wants to rent to more than 8 people, they should be classified as an Inn and subject to all life safety regulations. We are requesting that the City complete a full review of this ordinance, and its impact, six months after it has been adopted. In addition, we recommend a moratorium on additional licenses being issued until the completion of that report.   

“The DNA believes strongly in the value of owner-occupied property and that it should be encouraged. We recommend exploring a modification to the proposed zoning language and ordinance that provides for either:

a. An expansion of the existing definition of B&B Guest Units to allow for up to three rooms on a property

b. A separate (fifth) category of lodging use specifically defined for owner-occupied parcels from two to three rooms.

In either case, this could coincide with a Homestead Exemption. Also, the definition should be by parcel, not by unit, such that if an owner lives on a parcel with a separate carriage house or apartment, that does not count against them. As long as the owner lives on the property and is available to respond to neighbors and any issues that come up, we support allowing more flexibility.

“The business use of these residential properties has created parking issues for many residents. Specific relief for parking issues should be undertaken immediately and not wait for the completion of current or future studies. For example, the city needs to work quickly to adjust street sweeping days so that downtown streets are available on the weekends when demand is heaviest.”

Buckovich’s letter went on to request that the City of Savannah developea Tourism Master Plan. “We urge you to develop a plan that looks comprehensively at the nature of tourism in our city and its impact on the City of Savannah and the Landmark Historic District.”

Alderman Tony Thomas said the matter would not be decided Thursday and that a hearing will be scheduled to collect all the additional information Council needs to make a sensible decision. 

Other highlights of Council’s Thursday meeting were:

• Unanimous approval to begin the permitting application process for the western extension of the Savannah Riverwalk. The land belongs to SDR, LLC, developer’s of Richard Kessler’s Pnat Riverside luxury hotel in a soon-to-be rehabilitated defunct Georgia Power plant at the river’s edge near the intersection of River Street and MLK Blvd. However, a short section of this land, just under 23.5 feet, belongs to the City. This approval is only to begin the lengthy permit application process and does not constitute approval for any modifications to the property at this time.
• Declaration of the former Fire Station at 7 Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard as surplus property and place on the market for sale.
• Approval of additional funds for the President Street/General McIntosh Improvement Project.
• Prohibition of truck traffic on W. Chatham Crescent
• A resolution celebrating the life, legacy and accomplishments of Mrs. Lottie W. Brown, who passed away on Sunday, August 31. Mrs. Brown attended Savannah State College and George Peabody College, Nashville, Tennessee. She spent several years as a home maker, raising her children and later worked as a Lead Teacher for Head Start. She was First Lady at Saint John Baptist Church serving with her husband Pastor Emeritus Matthew Southall Brown, Sr. of Saint John Baptist Church for thirty five years. Mrs. Brown was a Deaconess, choir member, Sunday School teacher, Bible School leader, Senior Retired Leisure Club, Foreign Missions, Mission In Action, Minnie Bowman Senior Mission, Re-entry Journal and Archives Committee. Mrs. Brown’s affiliations extended beyond Saint John and included local, state, national and international Baptists Ministers’ Wives Associations. She served as Coordinator of the ministers’ wives of the General Missionary Baptist Convention of Georgia. She was crowned Georgia State Queen of the organization in 1989.

Mayor Pro Tem Van R. Johnson presided over Thursday’s meeting of the Savannah City Council in the absence of Mayor Edna Branch Jackson who, with City Manager Stephanie Cutter, were called away at the last minute to attend to a shooting on Savannah’s West Side involving a Savannah-Chatham Police officer and a handcuffed suspect already in custody. The suspect is alleged to have managed to get his shackled hands to the front of his body, kick out the windows of the patrol car in which he was placed, and produce a handgun with which he allegedly threatened police. A full investigation by the Georgia Bureau of Investigation is currently underway and no official details are available yet on exactly what happened.