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Planning commission approves short-term rental at 1112 W. Newman with parking and neighbor-notification conditions
Summary
After a lengthy public hearing on June 16, the Stillwater Planning Commission approved STR 0244 for 1112 West Newman Avenue by a 4-0 vote, imposing conditions including a four-car guest limit, no street parking, guest neighborhood guidance, and arrangements for trash handling to address neighbors’ safety and traffic concerns.
Stillwater — The Stillwater Planning Commission voted 4-0 on June 16 to approve short-term rental license STR 0244 for 1112 West Newman Avenue, concluding a public hearing that drew more than a dozen neighbors who raised concerns about traffic, parking, emergency access and neighborhood character.
Valerie Shoop, who lives at 1112 West Newman, told commissioners she and her husband bought the house April 14 and intend to host primarily parents visiting Oklahoma State students. "We wanted to give back to the Stillwater community," Shoop said, describing upgrades to the house, a two-night minimum stay, quiet hours starting at 10:00 p.m., a 28-and-over guest policy and a plan to screen guests with a minimum 4.8 rating on Airbnb. Shoop said she expects to be at the property roughly one week per month and will use a local property manager and housekeeper to respond to issues.
Neighbors speaking in opposition cited traffic and child-safety concerns. "My concern is mainly just traffic," said Laura Kaplan of 1123 West Hillcrest, noting children play near a heavily traveled intersection. Jen Tinnen, who lives on a corner lot adjacent to the subject block, said her family’s safety concerns are heightened because her husband is a military veteran with PTSD: "My biggest thing is my husband seeing someone driving reckless." Other long-term residents described the block as a quiet, limited-access neighborhood where additional transient vehicles could disrupt established routines and complicate trash collection and emergency access.
In response, Shoop agreed to several operational measures suggested by commissioners and neighbors: a limit of four guest vehicles, no street parking for guests, adding neighborhood safety guidance to the property’s welcome manual, and coordinating trash pickup so cans do not block the narrow street for extended periods. Staff confirmed the property has two garage spaces and two driveway spaces; Shoop said she and the manager will ask guests to use those spaces and will provide contact information to neighbors.
Staff presentation noted that the City Council approved a short-term rental text amendment the night before the meeting, but that the amendment will take 30 days to implement; applications filed before implementation are processed under the prior rules. Staff said they had not yet completed a line-by-line review of the application against the newly adopted code but confirmed there were no existing STR licenses on the immediate block.
Commissioners acknowledged neighbors’ concerns about traffic and safety but said the applicants had proposed multiple mitigation measures and that the block had no other licensed STRs. After a short discussion, the commission approved the license with the conditions described. The motion passed 4-0. The decision requires the applicants to follow the stated conditions; staff noted that when the license is renewed the application will be reviewed under the new short-term rental code that becomes effective after the 30-day period.
The commission’s action was limited to the short-term rental license; no enforcement or additional code changes were made at the meeting. The commission did not name a mover or seconder for the motion in the public record.
