There are at least 439 active short-term rental listings in the City of Greater Sudbury, according to a municipal report tabled for the Nov. 15 finance and administration meeting of city council.
The figure draws from an online listings aggregator called AirDNA, which notes 88 per cent of local short-term residential rental listings are on Airbnb.
City bylaw manager Stefany Mussen clarified in her report that the short-term rental listing estimate isn’t a concrete number, as it’s difficult to get an accurate count of how many exist in Greater Sudbury. Some listings are for certain months or weeks of the year, and there’s constant turnover of properties.
Mussen’s report concludes that the city’s Official Plan and Zoning Bylaw should be amended to permit short-term rentals in certain zones, and that a short-term rental bylaw be created.
Mayor Paul Lefebvre requested the report in a motion to city council in August, at which time he clarified that his intent was for the city to get a firmer grasp on what’s out there.
“It is something that is a burgeoning industry, and right now we don’t have any way to measure this,” he said. “The point of this motion is not to stop this, but to ensure we have the proper measures to be able to follow this in what’s going on.”
The proposed resolutions tabled for city council consideration on Nov. 15 would be a starting point triggering community engagement and a review of what other municipalities are doing, with recommendations coming back to city council by September 2024.
Although more will be known then (pending city council direction on Nov. 15), Mussen’s report offers some background on the implications of short-term rentals.
“There has been an increase in investment properties purchased specifically to capitalize on this market,” she notes, clarifying short-term rentals “provide an option for residential property owners to earn passive income.”
This, in turn, “can cause issues for the housing market and may cause neighbour disputes, a lack of affordable housing, and a negative impact on more traditional short-term accommodation providers such as hotels and resorts.”
To date, only one formal complaint has been filed with the city about a short-term rental property, and had to do with a property being used for large-scale events. This complaint, Mussen wrote, was dealt with by education and enforcement of the city’s noise bylaw.
The as-yet undefined Official Plan and Zoning Bylaw amendments proposed by Mussen would “define and permit STRs (short-term rentals) in certain zones subject to provisions.”
The similarly undefined proposed short-term rental bylaw “would outline basic requirements for owners and operators, with a focus on education and enforcement.”
The Nov. 15 finance and administration committee meeting will begin at 6 p.m., and can be viewed in-person at Tom Davies Square or livestreamed by clicking here.
The meeting will also find city staff table their draft 2024-25 budget, and budget presentations will be delivered by Greater Sudbury Police Services, Greater Sudbury Public LIbrary and Conservation Sudbury.
Tyler Clarke covers city hall and political affairs for Sudbury.com.
