The Salina City Council on Nov. 25 unanimously adopted a staff-drafted ordinance cleanup clarifying how the city issues and enforces short-term rental (STR) permits, including permit duration, administrative citation authority and who counts as the responsible permit holder.

The ordinance, introduced in a public hearing and approved with a motion to waive first reading, changes multiple municipal code sections to align the city’s timeline for appeals with state law, require annual renewals of STR permits (clarifying that permits do not ‘run with the land’), and expand the definition of a responsible permit holder to include tenants who operate STRs. "You have a permit for a year. You have to renew it each year," staff said when describing the intent to prevent permits from continuing in perpetuity without oversight.

Why it matters: the changes tighten administrative oversight of rentals that operate like small lodging businesses in residential areas. City staff said the amendments also add explicit language about using the administrative citation process as an enforcement tool in addition to court action.

What staff told the council: Mister Walsh, presenting the item as the staff lead, described the ordinance as primarily technical changes to bring code into compliance and to clarify procedures. He noted the code previously used a 30-day timeframe for certain enforcement-related appeals and that state law provides 90 days; the draft updates the city code to be consistent with state requirements. Walsh also explained that the code amendments move STR definitions into the general definitions section of the zoning code and clarify that 'transient occupancy' and 'short-term rental' carry the same meaning for enforcement and taxation purposes.

Details on permit administration and use: Zena Gomero, the planning division’s permit technician, told councilors the city currently has 21 short-term rental permits and staff recently contacted a legacy wait list dating to 2016 that contained about 90 people in an effort to fill available slots. Gomero gave application-cost figures: a short-term rental permit application is $2,250; new applications also bear a $600 public-notice fee; renewals do not carry the notice fee and are processed every two years. When asked about usage monitoring, Walsh said that if a permit averages fewer than 60 rental days per year over the two-year term, the permit will not be administratively renewed and will instead be elevated for planning-commission review.

Council questions and next steps: Vice Mayor Deasy asked whether the ordinance should require the city to send renewal reminders; Walsh said reminders are typically an administrative policy rather than an ordinance requirement and acknowledged staff turnover can affect consistency, adding that the city can adopt a staff-level policy to ensure reminders are sent. Council member Summers requested additional detail on TOT (transient occupancy tax) collection and revenue splits; staff said finance provides TOT data but did not provide a detailed breakdown at the hearing and will return with additional information if requested.

Vote and implementation: Council moved and seconded the staff recommendation and approved the ordinance language in a roll-call vote, with all council members present voting yes. Staff said they will update administrative procedures and return with any follow-up items or policy options requested by council.

Provenance: The public hearing, staff presentation, council questioning and the vote appear in the meeting transcript beginning with the introduction of the hearing and Walsh’s presentation and continuing through the motion and roll call (discussion spans SEG 529 through SEG 1002). The fee and permit-count details were provided in council Q&A and staff remarks (see SEG 736, SEG 873–879, SEG 991–1001).