Montgomery board hears application to convert 13 Brook Road into short-term rental

The Town of Montgomery Development Review Board took public testimony on an application by Nathan Eller to convert an existing single-family dwelling at 13 Brook Road (Parcel ID 00037) into a lodging establishment for short-term rental use. The notice read at the start of the hearing said the property is in the Village 1 District and within the river corridor; conditional use approval and a river-corridor (flood-hazard) review are required.

Eller told the board the house needs interior work but that his family bought it to subsidize seasonal visits and to rent it when they are not using it. "We're just here to, you know, submitting the permit and trying to get approval for to use our our home that we bought here as a short term rental," he said, describing plans to host families and noting he and his partner have four children. The applicant provided a rooms-and-meals tax license, a map, a lister's card, parking sketches and fire-safety documentation.

Board members focused questions on capacity, parking and local infrastructure rather than the applicant’s intent. The chair reiterated that the board follows the lister's card for bedroom count and occupancy limits and asked the applicant to commit to preventing street parking on the narrow residential road. The chair also explained procedural timing: minutes will be posted within five business days and the board has up to 45 days to issue a formal decision.

Next steps: the board will deliberate on the combined conditional-use and river-corridor review and post the outcome in accordance with the timelines explained at the hearing.