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West Chester staff report: rental‑license portal, short‑term rental counts and higher code enforcement citations
Summary
At the May 14 Smart Growth Committee meeting borough staff reported the rental‑license reconciling process ahead of a new portal launch, several recent zoning decisions including a short‑term rental special exception, and an uptick in code‑enforcement activity that has produced citations.
At the May 14 meeting borough staff gave a director’s report covering recruitment, the rental‑license transition, zoning board outcomes and recent enforcement activity.
Staff said the borough has posted the director position and asked committee members to share the LinkedIn posting. The borough is finishing this year’s rental‑license reconciliation ahead of a new online portal; staff said they will send clearer instructions to landlords and are considering an open house to help users with portal issues.
Staff reported Zoning Hearing Board actions since last month: an appeal for a student home was withdrawn under a settlement; 236 West Gay Street received a special exception for a short‑term rental with a maximum occupancy of four people; 143 East Marshall Street received zoning relief. Staff said the borough now has about 11 short‑term rental applications on file.
On enforcement, staff said code‑enforcement activity has increased and gave month‑to‑month figures. “In March, there were 91. In April, there were 24,” staff said, and explained that many April notices converted to citations when infractions were not abated. Staff reported 29 rental inspections (with five listed as “initial” in the system but likely duplicates created during portal migration) and 64 building inspections in the most recent month. Staff also said the office closed a backlog of older cases from the system migration and tasked officers to clear remaining backlog before the end of the month.
Staff noted Pennsylvania building codes are updated to the 2021 edition and that the borough has the 2021 books available; the update takes effect in July. Staff said they will provide updated enforcement and citation numbers at the next meeting.
Committee members asked for continued monitoring of portal issues and consistent enforcement across districts; no votes were taken on enforcement policy at the May 14 meeting.
