City council adopted short‑term rental rule and encampment policy, staff informs EDAC of compliance timeline

At the June 11 Economic Development Advisory Commission meeting, staff reported two housing policy actions the city council adopted earlier in the week: a short‑term rental ordinance and an encampment policy resolution.

Staff summarized the short‑term rental ordinance as an amendment to the city’s rental registration program that requires short‑term rental properties to have homestead status and defines short‑term rentals as stays under 30 days. The ordinance continues the registration requirement and provides a compliance grace period that staff said runs through Jan. 1, 2027, to allow existing hosts time to decide whether to homestead, switch to long‑term renting, or otherwise come into compliance.

On encampments, staff said the council adopted a resolution adding a policy to the council policy book establishing procedures for addressing encampments on city‑owned property and in public rights‑of‑way. Staff described the policy as a proactive guideline to supplement existing internal procedures and programs; staff said Minnetonka has seen few encampments to date but wants a prepared process.

Staff said a public hearing on short‑term rentals was held by the planning commission on May 28, with six speakers, and 23 respondents submitted comments through the Minnetonka Matters portal for council review. Staff expects outreach and compliance steps during the grace period.

The commission had no formal vote on these items; staff offered to provide more details about implementation timelines and compliance outreach as needed.