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Council advances first reading of short-term rental cap, fee increases and parking clarifications to committee
Summary
On first reading, council considered an ordinance to cap short-term rental permits at 60 per council district with exemptions, raise permit fees, clarify parking requirements and referred the matter to the Public Safety Committee; a resident urged enforcement during public comment.
The North Charleston City Council held the first reading of an ordinance proposing a citywide cap on short-term rental (STR) permits and changes to permit fees and parking rules, and referred the item to the Public Safety Committee for further review.
City staff presented the proposed amendment as a response to council requests to limit STR permits by council district. The ordinance would cap the maximum number of STR permits at 60 per council district while exempting owner-occupied room rentals, applications already in progress, and units annexed into the city. Staff stated that units in good standing could be renewed even if the district cap is later exceeded. The amendment also clarifies parking requirements for STR properties and raises the permit fees from $250 (initial) and $100 (renewal) to $350 (new permits) and $250 (renewals). Staff set a renewal-application deadline of Feb. 28, 2025.
Staff indicated that applications received after Jan. 13, 2025 in districts already over the 60-permit cap cannot be granted until capacity exists under the applicable district cap. At the meeting a staff member corrected an earlier statement about the planning commission, saying, "Actually, I wanna correct my 1 of my prior statements. I I said that planning commission recommended approval. They actually did not recommend approval at their last meeting for the short term rental cap. Okay. I apologize."
A member of the public, Keegan Robbins of 4525 Summy Street, spoke during public comment in support of the measure and urged enforcement. Robbins said, "I want to say in regards to the short term rental amendment, that I truly appreciate the council taking action on this issue. It's a real big and I'm excited to see that you're taking action on it and really looking at ways to curb it effectively for the community." Robbins added that investors converting long-term housing into short-term rentals reduce opportunities for local buyers and called for the ordinance to include enforceable penalties and resources.
Council referred the ordinance to the Public Safety Committee for consideration (committee date noted in the record as Feb. 20, 2025). Staff told council it hopes to adopt a revised amendment soon to give guidance to existing permit holders, potential purchasers and other interested parties.
