Pocomoke City staff propose stricter booking rules, require earlier insurance and online payments for log cabin rentals

Ms. Matthews, a city staff member, told the Pocomoke City Council at a March work session that the city has been losing rental revenue when people pay security deposits to hold the log cabin date but later fail to complete rental payments or notify staff they selected another venue. She said the current practice gives a prospective renter two weeks from the date the city emails or provides the application to pay the security deposit and two weeks from the event date to pay the balance and supply a certificate of insurance.

The staff discussion centered on several proposals to reduce no-shows and revenue loss: requiring renters to forfeit some or all of their security deposit if they cancel on short notice, requiring the certificate of insurance earlier (Ms. Matthews suggested two weeks before the event), and creating an online payment portal so deposits and rental payments post directly to the city account. Ms. Matthews said the insurance requirement exists so that a renter’s policy covers damage or injury rather than increasing the city’s own insurance rates; staff quoted the additional certificate cost at $100.

Council members and staff also discussed changing the timing for the security-deposit deadline. Several attendees suggested requiring payment at the time of reservation or by the two-week mark, with forfeiture if the renter misses that deadline. Council members and staff noted practical issues: many reservations are made by phone and later completed in person, and some renters do not have credit cards and would still need an in-person payment option.

Technology and accounting integration was another focus. Staff said the new city website and existing permitting/accounting software (referred to in the discussion as Energov/EPL and CivicPlus) could be linked so online bookings and payments automatically update the city ledger and block already-booked dates on the public calendar. Melinda, a city staff member, said she would look into whether the new website can host Google Forms or a booking portal that ties into the accounting system.

No formal policy or ordinance change was voted on at the session. Council members asked staff to draft a written policy and to return with recommended wording and the existing policy for review at a future meeting, so the council can consider specific deadlines, forfeiture amounts and whether to require insurance two weeks before events.