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Board approves tighter short‑term rental rules, caps and platform accountability to protect housing supply
Summary
Supervisors voted unanimously to consolidate hosted and unhosted short‑term rental rules, cap unhosted permits outside designated coastal zones at 270, tighten block‑density limits, require a unified complaints hotline and hold hosting platforms accountable for listings without permits.
The Santa Cruz County Board of Supervisors unanimously approved a package of changes to short‑term rental (STR) regulations intended to limit commercial conversions of housing, strengthen local enforcement and support hotel industry resiliency.
Supervisors Justin Koenig and John Cummings led a six‑month ad‑hoc effort and presented a consolidated ordinance that merges hosted and unhosted rules into a single short‑term rental code, adds permit‑level inspections and ownership verification, and tightens density controls in neighborhoods stressed by rentals.
Key provisions approved by the board include: a countywide cap of 270 unhosted (non‑hosted) permits outside the previously designated coastal areas (the cap preserves existing approved permits and those in process); a phased reduction of unused permit capacity in designated zones (10 permits per year over five years where unused); a 20% block density limit that will not be exceeded by new approvals; a requirement that hosting platforms only display permitted listings (noncompliance could trigger administrative fines up to $1,000 per day per listing); a countywide unified hotline for complaints and tracking; a one‑permit‑per‑person/entity limit to prevent corporate accumulation of multiple permitted rentals; and clarified enforcement and site‑plan standards.
Supervisor Koenig said the goal was to “thread the needle” between resident concerns and tourism needs, adding that platform accountability is the most effective way to cut off unpermitted activity. Supervisor Cummings emphasized housing‑stock protection and thanked community groups and industry for input. The board also directed staff to return with Planning Commission review and to consider a separate staff report on creating a hotel overlay district to facilitate hotel expansion by September 30, 2025.
Public comment at a widely attended community meeting and at the hearing showed broad neighborhood support for density limits and a unified hotline; hotel and tourism representatives urged the county to pursue hotel investment opportunities as the ordinance seeks to preserve visitor accommodation capacity while protecting long‑term housing.
The ordinance also included a narrowly worded exception path allowing an owner to live in an accessory dwelling unit (ADU) and rent the primary dwelling as a hosted rental in limited circumstances — an edge case staff said would be monitored.
The board’s unanimous vote sends the draft to the Planning Commission and then back for final adoption; Coastal Commission review may be required for coastal zone changes.
