Wallsburg planners review draft short-term rental ban, reserve conditional path for hotels and B&Bs

Wallsburg Planning Commission members on Tuesday reviewed a proposed short-term rental ordinance that would bar short-term rentals in the town's residential zones while permitting hotels, motels, RV parks, campgrounds and bed-and-breakfasts only through the conditional-use process.

Commissioners said the draft is intended to give the town a proactive tool to address advertising and operation of short-term rentals such as Airbnb listings. Spencer Foster, who prepared the draft language for the commission, said short-term rentals would be defined as residential stays of less than 30 consecutive days and long-term rentals as 30 days or longer. "This ordinance says that these are not approved in Wallsburg in residential areas," Foster said, adding that hotels and similar commercial lodging would be allowed if the town created or rezoned commercial property.

The commission discussed enforcement options and penalties included in the draft. Foster described a common enforcement ladder used by other small Utah towns: an initial written warning, a second-violation fine (the draft suggests $500) and escalating penalties for continuing violations (other towns cited in the discussion use $1,000 per day for ongoing noncompliance). "If you have your penalties written down and in your ordinances, then that gives you the first step to what you need to do to correct the situation," Foster said.

Commission members raised two recurring concerns: how to distinguish a bed-and-breakfast from an advertised short-term rental and the town's capacity to enforce violations. Commissioner Lucille O'Driscoll noted that Wallsburg currently has only residential zoning, so the draft's exemptions for hotels and B&Bs would be meaningful only if the town creates a commercial zone or approves a conditional use permit. "We only have residential," O'Driscoll said. Foster recommended defining terms (for example, what constitutes a bed-and-breakfast versus a short-term rental) and adding a permitting or conditional-use requirement so property owners must seek approval and demonstrate compliance.

Commissioners discussed a transient room tax (TRT) as a tool to both raise revenue and surface existing short-term rentals on tax rolls. Foster said the TRT is typically 1 percent in similar towns and would require a separate ordinance and notice to the county if Wallsburg adopts it. He cautioned the commission that Utah law limits enforcement actions that are based solely on advertising: "You can't shut them down solely for advertising," Foster said, explaining that the town must collect additional evidence, complaints or inspection results before issuing citations.

There was no vote or formal action on the draft ordinance at Tuesday's meeting; commissioners agreed to send suggested edits through Alicia O'Driscoll and to schedule further review. The planner said he will update the draft, including replacing Utah County references with Wasatch County where needed, and the commission will consider a public hearing and a recommendation to the council at a subsequent meeting.

Commissioners also noted the practical limits of enforcement in a small town without a dedicated code-enforcement officer and discussed whether enforcement duties should fall to an appointed town staff member, a contract position or an existing official. The commission did not adopt any enforcement appointments or a TRT at the meeting.

The commission directed reviewers to send edits for the draft ordinance to Alicia O'Driscoll for consolidation and follow-up before a future public hearing.