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Hearing officer fines Norwalk property owner $7,500 after finding illegal rooming-house conversion and short-term rentals
Summary
A hearing officer found that the converted garage at 34 Garner St. contained individually locked bedrooms and a shared kitchen and imposed a $7,500 fine after the owner continued to advertise the space on Airbnb despite prior notices.
Robert Vaseline, the hearing officer presiding over Norwalk City Planning & Zoning enforcement hearings on Jan. 22, 2025, imposed a $7,500 fine on the owner of 34 Garner Street after finding an unpermitted conversion of a garage into rented sleeping rooms and an active short-term rental listing.
Vaseline said the property had been inspected on Sept. 18, 2024, and staff found a former garage space walled and finished as living quarters with multiple individually locked bedrooms and a kitchenette. Zoning staff also located an Airbnb listing that matched interior photos taken during the inspection. Vaseline said the owner received notice of the earlier October hearing and was told to apply for necessary permits; the hearing officer recorded that the owner continued to advertise the converted space and did not file the permits before the Jan. 22 hearing. "I'm going to impose a fine of $7,500," Vaseline said on the record.
Why it matters: The decision enforces zoning and building rules intended to separate permitted single-family use from multi-occupancy rooming-house or short-term rental operations that require different approvals and safety reviews. City staff described two distinct violations: work done without required zoning/building permits and a use that amounts to a rooming house (separate sleeping rooms with shared facilities) in a single-family zone.
City staff presented photographs from the inspection showing the former garage entry closed off and interior rooms with keypad locks on bedroom doors and a common kitchenette. Staff said the notice of violation was issued Sept. 9, 2024, and a citation followed on Oct. 11. The owner attended the October continuation but had not submitted the corrective applications requested at that time, staff said. The inspector testified that the property remained advertised on Airbnb every time staff checked the listing, including within days of the Jan. 22 hearing.
Outcome and next steps: The hearing officer found the violations proved and assessed a $7,500 civil penalty. Vaseline also recorded that the city will not issue a certificate of occupancy or other final approvals until zoning compliance and any required building permits are obtained. The hearing officer closed the contested hearing after announcing the fine. Staff retained the record and will follow up on permit filings and compliance.
The Jan. 22 session was conducted under the Planning & Zoning Department's enforcement procedures for Norwalk City; staff said the property lies in the CD-1S zoning district.
