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September 9, 2025 St. Anthony Council Work Session - 3 <br />have. Councilmember Doolan added that that is what she was trying to say. Councilmember Jenson <br />asked if that would be long-term or forever, or a timeframe from the day the ordinance was passed. <br />Councilmember Doolan stated there would be two options. Councilmember Jenson stated that the <br />person renting short-term can rent long-term instead. Mr. Grittman stated that the ordinance says that <br />short-term rentals should cease, and some enforcement action would be taken to ensure that they do <br />so. Their options would be to convert those properties to long-term rentals or sell the properties. <br />Councilmember Doolan stated that St. Anthony is not the only City looking at this, and is staff aware of <br />any litigation taking place? Mr. Lindgren stated he is aware of two pieces of litigation pending, which are <br />currently scheduled for motions, where the Cities are seeking a motion for summary judgment. They are <br />scheduled for December 2025. In those cities, they do not have an ordinance in place to define what a <br />dwelling unit is. The City has the power to protect the community. The City is within its rights to regulate <br />it in this manner. <br />Mayor Webster stated this is not allowed in an R-1 district and asked if this excludes hotels. Mr. <br />Lindgren stated in R-1 dwelling units are allowed, and they must be a place of residence. Dwelling units <br />do not include motels. A motel is a place for overnight accommodations and transient guests. A short- <br />term rental is like a motel and is not allowed in the R-1 district. Mayor Webster stated this ordinance <br />would make that clearer. <br />Mayor Webster asked the Councilmembers for their thoughts on the proposed ordinance. <br />Councilmember Elnagdy stated her concerns included making rules that would remove rights from <br />property owners. There are a certain number of licensed properties, and she asked Mr. Grittman of the <br />7 found on Airbnb how many are licensed. Mr. Grittman stated he does not know for sure. Mr. Yunker <br />stated that it is not many. Councilmember Elnagdy stated that if our concern is making sure that <br />investors don’t come in and buy a bunch of properties. There should be carve-outs for well-maintained <br />properties. The more we carve out individuals, other individuals would say what about me. The City <br />would have a good argument there. It is reasonable for licensed residents to follow the rules and <br />maintain the property well. Do we want to handle those that exist and do what we want them to do <br />differently? Banning going forward would be fine, but why get rid of those doing what we want them to <br />do? <br />Councilmember Randle asked what the Council is trying to solve. Are we trying to solve an issue that <br />doesn’t exist, or does it exist? He is not clear on what is being done. He could see moving forward if we <br />want to cap the number of short-term licenses. Those without licenses need to go. But for those who <br />are licensed and doing things the right way, why would we want to interfere with that? <br />Councilmember Doolan stated that it is a good question. We don’t want investment companies to come <br />in and purchase properties. One of the main concerns is to continue to let this grow, as it is taking those <br />properties out of those available for people to purchase and live in St. Anthony. She does not know how <br />to handle those who are unaware of the restrictions and let them continue to operate. <br />Councilmember Jenson stated he would favor this being implemented and creating a grace period to <br />allow people a reasonable time to adjust to a long-term rental. Those operating without a license should <br />not be rewarded with a grace period. If ownership of the property changes, the license would be <br />revoked. People want to live in St. Anthony. <br />Councilmember Randle asked what if people can’t afford to own, and renting is the only option they <br />have.