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Lorain council discusses making short-term rentals a permitted use, adding BCI background checks
Summary
Council members, staff and residents discussed a proposed amendment to Lorain’s zoning and short-term rental rules that would make short-term rentals an administratively reviewed permitted use and require BCI background checks for applicants; the item was referred to committee for further detail.
Lorain City Council members and residents on Tuesday considered proposed changes to the city’s short-term rental rules that would move short-term rentals from a conditional-use process to an administratively reviewed permitted use and require BCI background checks for applicants.
The proposal, recommended by the Lorain City Planning Commission on Jan. 2, 2025, would amend several sections of the Lorain Codified Ordinances — including the schedules of allowed uses for residential, business, industrial and mixed-use districts and specific provisions related to food, drink, entertainment and hospitality — and amend ordinance 251-23 on short-term rental regulations. “One of the main changes is that we are going to be reviewing the applications administratively,” City Housing Officer Emily Atkinson said, adding the existing conditional-use permit application process can delay openings for operators.
Atkinson said the city would keep the same substantive requirements now listed under the conditional-use process but move those requirements into a general provision (referenced in the draft as section 1141.33) so staff could approve eligible applications without waiting for a planning commission hearing. Under the proposal, the letter “c” designator in the schedules of allowed uses would change to “p,” indicating a permitted use. “We are asking that the host of the short-term rental obtain a BCI background check,” Atkinson said, specifying the requirement would apply to the applicant — typically the property owner or LLC — the listed local agent and, if applicable, a property manager.
Residents and landlords who spoke during the public hearing voiced concerns about effects on residential neighborhoods, enforcement and the criteria for denying applications. “They’re still going to be permitted in residential areas,” one resident said, urging the council to consider neighborhood impacts. Patrick Cohen, a Lorain resident, urged background checks for all landlords as well as short-term rental hosts, saying the city needs broader enforcement of rental standards.
Several speakers pressed for clear, written standards defining which criminal records would disqualify applicants. Atkinson said staff are researching comparable city practices and that administration would set thresholds (for example, sexual-offender and fraud convictions were among categories discussed) and that applicants denied administratively could appeal to the Zoning Board of Appeals. “If they are denied in that administrative process, they can ask for a hearing from the Zoning Board of Appeals,” Atkinson said.
Speakers also raised enforcement and compliance questions, including how the city would identify operating short-term rentals, the $500 fee applicants currently pay when their applications go to planning commission, and whether platforms such as Airbnb could provide transaction or operator data. Atkinson said staff are working with Airbnb on options to provide transient-occupancy information to the treasurer’s office and that an Airbnb contact number could be shared at the committee meeting. “We’re working on that with Airbnb now as an option,” she said.
Landlord-advocacy comments called for additional city tools to compel property owners to address repeat calls for police service and code violations, with one speaker citing the example of fines attached to tax bills. “We need the city to pull up some ordinances to help us,” landlord Keith Gordon said, asking the city to consider landlord permitting and stronger enforcement mechanisms.
Council members and staff said the item was referred to committee for more detailed discussion, and the committee will hold public meetings where residents can comment further. No final council action was taken at the hearing.
The planning commission recommendation, the draft ordinance language that moves conditions into section 1141.33, the proposed BCI check requirement and any administrative thresholds for denial will be discussed in committee before the council considers final ordinance amendments.
