When a short-term rental is next to a private residence on Anna Maria Island, there usually isn’t much space between the structures. That results in a fine line between property rights and disturbing the peace.
A resident of Bay Drive North, whose bayfront home is next door to a short-term rental, believes the noise and parking problems he encounters have crossed that line.
Kerry Freesen, a part-time resident of Bradenton Beach who lives in Springfield, Illinois, about five months of the year, said the property next to his home is rented out to new people every week. At the time of the March 30 interview, there were at least 14 people in the house, he said.
When children were at the pool, Freesen said, “We had to come inside, due to the screaming.”
Freesen, who is a grandparent, said he doesn’t begrudge anyone taking a family vacation with their kids “and I know kids are going to holler and yell. They are on vacation.
“But when you’ve got three families in the house, you just multiply the kids by two or three or four and then the noise is just hard to tolerate.”
The short-term rental was built in 2010. Freesen, a retired road contractor, built his home in 2012. His primary complaints are parking and noise.
“It’s always been the case that there are too many people staying there,” Freesen said.
Freesen has not spoken to anyone from a property management company. He said a woman who identified herself as the property owner came by and told him she would talk to the agent and try to get the situation under control. “Nothing seems to change,” Freesen said.
Mike Brinson, owner of Anna Maria Island Accommodations, 315 Pine Ave., Anna Maria, manages the property next to Freesen’s home. He says this is the first complaint he’s heard about the six-bedroom home known online as “Casa Del Sol.”
“We definitely hold to occupancy limits on the homes,” Brinson said. Casa Del Sol sleeps 14 people. “I hate to hear that it’s causing this neighbor grief.” He added that he hopes Freesen contacts him.
Brinson said whenever he receives a complaint, he contacts the guests immediately and deals with the issue.
“The home has been there for years,” he said. “We try to make sure that we do our best in preventing noise and making sure people are following the rules.”
To that end, Brinson said guests are given information about the city’s noise ordinance and parking rules, along with a map of the area. This house in particular has a three-car limit, he added.
“If they have more cars than that, I would love for that neighbor to reach out to me. The last thing I want is for him to be blocked into his house,” Brinson said.
Freesen said that if Brinson were to drive by, he would see four or five cars parked in front of the house. “We have nowhere to park.”