Vacation rentals in residential districts are under scrutiny in Holmes Beach.
Prior to being elected city commissioner Nov. 3, concerns regarding the legitimacy of Jayne Christenson’s vacation rental “cottage” adjoining her home in the 100 block of 49th Street had come to the attention of the Manatee County Property Appraiser’s Office.
The PAO questioned why Christenson’s residence was listed as a single-family residence with one unit with the county but was considered a duplex in the city’s vacation rental program.
Scott Tussing at the PAO said Nov. 2 that his office knew of Christenson’s plans to rent a unit since 2016, but they were awaiting confirmation from the city that the home has two segregated units. Later that day, Tussing said he received a call from the city stating they intended to classify the property as a “single-family with a mother-in-law suite.”
“It will be two units,” Tussing said.
In an email Nov. 2 to code compliance, city planner Bill Brisson cited an excerpt of the city land development code, which states that the rental of a “guest room, bedroom, or any permutation of the same activity,” as a temporary or transient unit, is prohibited.
However, Holmes Beach code compliance supervisor JT Thomas said Nov. 4 that Christenson was issued a vacation rental certificate in 2016 because she had acquired a business tax receipt to rent the unit, which shares a wall with the primary residence, but contains separate kitchen facilities and a bathroom.
“We are just trying to put the fruit correctly back in the basket,” Thomas said. “Our goal is compliance and to put it on the grid. We are still having the building official and city planner look into the history, but for right now, it looks like everything is OK.”