Summerville council gives first reading to changes for bed-and-breakfast rules after heated public comments

The Summerville Town Council gave first reading to proposed amendments to the town’s Unified Development Ordinance (UDO) that would change rules for homestay bed-and-breakfast operations, after more than an hour of public comment and council debate.

Councilwoman Tiffany Johnson Wilson moved to give first reading to amendments that would allow a professional innkeeper to be hired and permit up to seven guest rooms in a bed-and-breakfast; the motion passed on first reading with one councilmember recorded in opposition. Council members directed town staff to refine the B&B language and return with revisions ahead of second reading.

The vote followed an extended public-comment period in which B&B owners and long-time residents presented sharply different views. Chelsea Bozek, a local resident at 102 Hughes Street and owner of one of Summerville’s early conditional-use licensed short-term rentals, told council: "The UDO…