Zoning board approves owner-occupied short-term rental at 12 Harvey Road with neighbor agreement

The Town of Middletown Zoning Board on May 20 approved a special use permit allowing owners William and Ellen Kelly to operate an owner-occupied short-term rental at 12 Harvey Road, incorporating a signed agreement with a directly abutting neighbor.

The board granted the permit by a 5-0 vote after the applicants and neighbors negotiated terms and submitted the written conditions as an exhibit. Attorney Jay Lynch, representing the Kellys, told the board that the parties "have negotiated acceptable conditions" and that those terms would be introduced as an exhibit to be incorporated into any approval.

The agreement (entered into the record as Exhibit A) limits short-term rental activity to the lower unit only; the Kellys will reside on the second floor. The agreement also caps rented bedrooms at two and total guests at six, restricts guest parking to the driveway on the north side of the house, prohibits parking and trash storage on the south side of the property, and bars weddings and similar large events. The Kellys also agreed that the property's existing backyard wood fire pit will remain for owner use only and will not be available to renters. William Kelly testified that these conditions reflect the parties' understanding.

Zoning enforcement and the building official confirmed the application met the zoning criteria for a special use permit under the town's short-term rental provisions. The board chair noted that, "neighbors can sit down and come to an agreement and make it right so that everybody is happy," and the board said the final signed agreement would be attached to and recorded with the decision.

The board recorded the motion to approve, which passed unanimously among voting members present. The approval was explicitly conditioned on incorporating the submitted agreement; the board stated that the agreement would be attached to the decision and recorded.

The board also discussed that, under the applicants' agreement, the permit would terminate upon sale of the property and a new owner would have to apply for a new special use permit. No public speakers opposed the application at the hearing.

The decision closes this petition subject to the recorded agreement; enforcement of the ordinance and the agreement will be managed through the town's zoning enforcement processes going forward.