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Osakis council to send possible rental ordinance to planning department for review
Summary
Council discussed an EDA-initiated rental ordinance intended to improve accountability for rental properties — including registration and inspections — and referred the item to planning and zoning and legal review to work out enforcement details and fees.
The Osakis City Council discussed a proposed rental-ordinance concept brought to the agenda by the Economic Development Authority and planning and zoning staff, and agreed to send the draft to planning and zoning and the city attorney for further review.
Councilors and staff said the 2019 effort to create a rental ordinance stalled and the current conversation is driven by recurring problems: landlords or property owners who do not reside locally, units that lack required safety features (for example, bedrooms without windows), and difficulty contacting owners when police or city staff need access. Speakers emphasized that many rental owners are compliant and that any new rules should target problem properties without unduly burdening responsible landlords.
Concerns and next steps: council members flagged likely points of contention — inspection costs, how to identify and contact absentee owners, and whether inspections would impose new fees on otherwise compliant property owners. Several members recommended a legal review by Mr. Jones (Source Law) and moving the discussion to planning and zoning or a joint workshop with EDA and the police department to collect input, examine enforcement mechanisms and craft language to avoid unintended consequences for developers or large multi-unit holdings.
No formal ordinance was adopted. The council voted to refer the matter to planning and zoning and to schedule further discussion in a workshop so the attorney and department heads can review legal options, enforcement mechanics and potential fee structures.
Provenance: the item was introduced as Project 60-1 (rental ordinance) and the discussion runs through staff and council comments before the referral to planning and zoning.
