Page County planning commission debates two-path approach for short-term rentals, including registry and SUP triggers

The Planning Commission spent a large portion of the meeting reviewing a comprehensive draft framework for regulating short-term rentals (STRs). Commissioner Johnson framed the process around community values—managing pace of change, protecting long-term housing, preserving rural character and public safety—and proposed options including a mandatory registry, occupancy limits tied to bedrooms, distance setbacks, screening, and different rules for by-right uses versus a special-use permit.

Commissioners discussed creating two draft versions for the Board of Supervisors: one that treats certain STRs as a by-right use with standards and another that requires STRs in residential zones to obtain a special-use permit. Ideas debated included a two-year ownership requirement for non-owner-occupied by-right STRs, distance-based setbacks or screening (rather than strict property-line setbacks), requiring disclosure of HOA restrictive covenants as an application attachment, and using bedroom-based occupancy limits. Staff said some items would be better handled as SUP conditions, while others may be codified as standards. The commission directed staff to prepare two drafts reflecting the by-right and SUP approaches and to coordinate with the county attorney as needed. "So if you want 2 documents, we'll have 2 documents for you," staff said, and commissioners instructed staff to move the drafts forward for board consideration.