The Mentelle Neighborhood Association board has voted unanimously to oppose an application to convert a single-family home at 714 Hambrick Ave. into an un-hosted short-term rental property.
Here are details of that application. The city’s Board of Adjustment will consider the application at a public hearing at 1:30 p.m. Monday, Feb. 12, in the Council chambers at City Hall, 200 E. Main St.
The MNA board took this step after the city completed the process of registering existing short-term rentals to be “grandfathered-in” under a new law regulating them.
The MNA board has been concerned for some time about the number of owner-occupied homes and long-term rental properties in the neighborhood being converted into short-term rentals. But it wasn’t until this month that the new law allowed neighbors to learn exactly how many are operating. According to the city Division of Planning’s website, there are at least 19 short-term rental units at 14 addresses inside or within a block of Mentelle neighborhood. The board thinks that is more than enough, and no more should be allowed.
This application has generated strong opposition from nearby neighbors on Hambrick Avenue. Several of them have launched a petition to the Board of Adjustment, urging it to reject the application. If you wish to see what they have to say and sign the petition, click here.
MNA board members emphasize that they are not opposed to “hosted” short-term rentals, where the owner lives on the property. And they certainly have no problem with long-term rental property, so long as it is well-managed.
Mentelle was one of Lexington’s first neighborhood associations to welcome renters and businesses located within the neighborhood as members. Our neighborhood includes many renters, businesses and non-profit organizations, as well as three houses of worship and an elementary school. All are valued neighbors.
An un-hosted short-term rental property is different; it is vacant unless occupied by a transient renter with no stake in the neighborhood’s quality of life. The board also has concerns about our neighborhood being “hollowed out” by too many un-hosted short-term rentals that also would have the effect of driving up long-term rents and property values for would-be homebuyers.
For more information about the new city law, un-hosted short-term rentals in our neighborhood and other news and background on this subject, click here.