Goshen delays vote on short-term rental laws, schedules May 8 public hearing; draft to be posted May 1

The Town of Goshen Town Board opened public hearings on three local laws governing short-term rentals but voted to continue the hearings to May 8 so the town attorney can finalize and publish a revised draft for additional public comment.

Town Attorney Rory Brady told the board he will incorporate feedback from the planning and code-enforcement attorneys and expects to post a draft on the town website on May 1 so residents have time to read it before the May 8 continued public hearing. Brady said he intends to provide the town board with a proposed final draft around the April 24 board meeting for internal review.

Brady described two approaches discussed earlier — an outright ban versus a permit-based model — and said he had identified potential constitutional challenges (equal protection and dormant commerce clause claims) to a categorical ban but had not found a successful legal challenge to such a ban in his research. He recommended the board weigh enforcement practicality as it decides whether to ban, permit or tightly regulate short-term rentals.

Public commenters and board members pressed several topics Brady said his draft would address: whether owner-occupancy should be required for short-term rentals, carve-outs or special accommodations for working farms, how a county short-term rental registry would be used as presumptive evidence of a rental, and enforcement and hotel-tax collection. Several residents urged owner-occupancy or usage limits rather than an outright ban to allow farmers and homeowners limited flexibility while reducing investor-run, nonresidential short-term rental activity.

Board action: members moved to continue the local laws’ public hearings and set the public hearing date for May 8; the motion passed. Brady asked residents to send written feedback to him and to Mary (town staff) so the board can see public comments without creating an inadvertent quorum discussion by email.

Why it matters: Short-term rental policy affects neighborhood character, enforcement workload and potential tax revenue. The attorney noted the town’s enforcement capacity and legal exposure differ depending on whether the town adopts a permit system (with enforcement pathways) or a full ban that could invite litigation.

Next steps: Brady will circulate his revised draft to the board for internal review, post a draft on the town website on May 1, and bring the item back for the May 8 public hearing and possible vote. The board signaled it will consider written public comments submitted before the meeting but emphasized that material changes identified at the hearing might require referral back to the planning board or additional review.