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Mentor Council prohibits short-term rentals citywide, approves companion zoning changes
Summary
Mentor City Council on March 18, 2025 approved two ordinances that prohibit short-term rentals across all zoning districts and remove related permissive and conditional uses from the zoning code; the law director warned state bills could preempt local control.
Mentor City Council voted March 18 to ban short-term rentals across the city and to amend its zoning rules to remove related permissive and conditional uses.
The council approved Ordinance 24-O-071, “enacting chapter 752, business regulation code … to establish prohibitions against short term rentals in all zoning districts,” and Ordinance 24-O-072, which replaces provisions related to “renting of rooms and short term rentals.” Both measures were removed from the table and passed after council discussion. The two votes passed 6–1, with Councilmember Marne recorded as the lone no vote on each ordinance.
Why it matters: The changes shift regulation of short-term rentals out of the zoning code into the city’s business regulation code and strike short-term rental language from overlay zoning and from the conditional use category for renting of rooms. That combination is intended to close pathways by which short-term rental activity has occurred under the city’s current code.
Law Director Joe briefed council on pending state legislation that, if enacted, could preempt municipal authority on short-term rentals. “They would try to strip local control,” Joe said, describing competing house and senate bills currently in committee. He added that the measures “would preempt all municipal control over short term rentals, regulate them pursuant to state law so that local communities would not be permitted to prohibit them in any residential district.”
Joe also explained the practical effect of the local vote: “A yes vote, we create a brand new class of regulations under our our business regulations code, so outside the zoning code.” He said the companion ordinance (O-072) would remove short-term rentals as a permitted use in the overlay zones and would strike the conditional use classification for “renting of rooms,” which has been used in some instances to allow short-term activity.
Councilmembers and city administration described the change as a means of clarifying the city’s rules after years of ambiguity in the code. City Manager Ken said administration staff can provide model policy language if council wishes to adopt more detailed regulations later.
Votes at a glance: Ordinance 24-O-071 — passed 6–1 (Yes: Dowling, Freeman, Kirschner, Krieger, Blake, Donovan; No: Marne). Ordinance 24-O-072 — passed 6–1 (Yes: Dowling, Freeman, Kirschner, Krieger, Blake, Donovan; No: Marne).
The council did not take additional regulatory steps at the meeting beyond approving the ordinances; members noted the possibility of future model policies or regulations depending on state action and local direction.
