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Resident urges Newport News to study short‑term rentals, cites Hampton's ordinance as a model
Summary
During public comment, Greg Garrett urged the council to reconsider the city’s ban on non-owner-occupied short‑term rentals, called the prior process inadequate and handed members a packet including Hampton's ordinance for study.
Greg Garrett told the Newport News City Council on July 22 that the city's current ordinance prohibiting non-owner-occupied short-term rentals should be revisited and replaced with a more studied approach. Garrett said the city "did no study" before adopting the prohibition and urged council to look to Hampton's 13-month stakeholder process as an example.
Garrett characterized the original council vote to ban non-owner-occupied short-term rentals as a 4-3 decision and said roughly 39 of about 40 speakers at that earlier meeting opposed the ordinance. He argued that permitting a small share of short-term rentals would generate tourism tax revenue, support entrepreneurs and produce funds to improve schools and other services.
"We can learn from the city of Hampton, put together a stakeholder group, find the people that are for it or against it, and solve it," Garrett said, and handed the council a packet including his letter and a copy of Hampton's ordinance.
No council action or staff analysis of the short-term rental ordinance was recorded at this meeting.
What to watch for If council directs staff to study the issue, expected next steps would include: convening a stakeholder group, commissioning comparative analysis of local ordinances (including Hampton's), assessing tax and enforcement implications, and preparing draft ordinance language for public hearings.
