BZA defers decision on short-term rental permit at Welch Avenue for further staff review

The Board of Zoning and Appeals deferred action on a special-exception application to permit a short-term rental at 2173 Welch Avenue on April 7 after staff and several board members expressed uncertainty about how the property would be used and whether the application was the correct procedural path.

Applicant representatives said the property would be used primarily by employees of a fiber-optic construction company (Wolfline Construction) as an occasional corporate residence while teams were on site in Charleston. The applicant said the owners (a separate LLC) would receive payment from the company when employees used the property. The applicant said the property would not be advertised on public booking platforms and called the use a corporate residence rather than a public short-term rental.

Board members and staff questioned whether the proposed arrangement—an LLC-to-LLC accommodation with recurring stays for employees—was a short-term rental (which the county regulates and permits) or a different rental arrangement not requiring a short-term rental permit (for example, a longer-term lease or corporate housing). Staff representatives said they would need a more detailed letter of intent and a clearer operating plan (e.g., local property manager/contact, occupancy procedures, and whether the unit would be advertised publicly) to determine whether a short-term rental permit was required.

Because the record supplied with the application was general and did not clearly show how the property would be managed, the board voted to defer the case and asked staff to work with the applicant and the county legal office to clarify whether the short-term rental process was appropriate or whether another permitting pathway would be used. The applicant may return with a more detailed operating plan or withdraw the short-term rental application if it is unnecessary.