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ZBA takes appeal on short-term rental denial tied to RV; board treats matter as interpretation
Summary
A local property owner whose short-term rental permit was denied over an on-site RV had the matter accepted by the ZBA as an appeal/interpretation. The board advised the applicant that a use variance would be a different, harder route and instead will hear the appeal on March 19.
The Rhinebeck Zoning Board of Appeals on Feb. 19 accepted for public hearing an appeal from a property owner whose short-term rental (STR) permit application was denied because of an on-site recreational vehicle and an owner-occupancy requirement. The board agreed to treat the filing as an appeal/interpretation of the zoning enforcement officer's decision rather than immediately as a use-variance application.
The applicant (introduced in the record as Mr. Stallin) said an RV has been on his property for about three years; he described operating a modest short-term rental business out of an on-site structure and an apartment and said he spends substantial time at the rural property inside Route 308's cloverleaf. He said the RV had been used mainly on weekends and that last year the site recorded approximately 55 rental nights. He told the board he sought to comply with a new town/state STR registration regime and therefore applied for the town permit.
Town staff and board members explained the procedural options. The board noted that overturning a zoning-enforcement determination via an appeal would require the ZBA to step into the zoning enforcement officer's position and decide whether the denial was correct; alternatively, a use variance would request permission to change a prohibited use in that zoning district, a standard the ZBA described as difficult to meet. After discussion the board concluded the submission would proceed as an appeal/interpretation; the board set a public hearing for March 19.
The Feb. 19 meeting did not change any permits or enforcement orders. The ZBA asked the applicant to consider consulting an attorney to clarify the desired relief (appeal versus use-variance) and said the appeal will be adjudicated at the public hearing, where neighbors and the applicant may present evidence.
