Alpharetta adopts short-term rental regulations and licensing ordinance with new contact and posting requirements
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Summary
The council adopted UDC and city-code changes to regulate short-term rentals, including licensing, a 24/7 local contact requirement (expanded to two contacts), posting requirements, and grandfathering considerations; council requested staff follow-up on grandfathering outcomes.
After multiple public hearings, the Alpharetta City Council adopted combined Unified Development Code and city-code amendments to regulate short-term rentals, creating a licensing system, operational standards and enforcement provisions.
Director Cook and city staff presented revisions following prior hearings and public input. The ordinance requires a registered agent, annual licensing and a local contact person reachable 24/7. During public comment, neighborhood representatives and short-term-rental operators asked for clarifications. Esi Escobedo, a neighborhood HOA treasurer, asked whether the application must include proof that a homeowner association allows short-term rentals. Staff said the ordinance requires a sworn affidavit where the property is in a platted subdivision that the use is not prohibited by covenants; false statements could lead to license revocation and other enforcement actions.
Frankie Elliott of the Atlanta-area Realtors identified two technical requests: allow two local contact persons rather than one (to ensure coverage when someone leaves town) and avoid requiring the owner's name to be posted inside the rental unit when a local contact person already exists. A council motion amended the city-code draft to require two local contact persons (rather than one) and to allow posted contact information to read as 'the name of the owner and/or local contact person' with a 24/7 telephone number.
Council members discussed grandfathering. Staff said grandfathering determinations are fact-based and may require case-by-case administrative review; staff committed to returning to council within 120 days to report on any grandfathering issues encountered and possible code clarifications. The council approved the UDC and code changes with the amendments to local-contact and posting language; the final ordinance passed with one abstention recorded on the final vote.
The adopted regulations create an application and licensing path, set operational conditions, authorize enforcement and penalties, and require administrative processes to check covenants where applicable; staff will implement a new licensing workflow and return with a report on grandfathering outcomes.