Last night’s Bay City Council workshop was short on items (3) but long on discussion. I left at 7:30, just when the talk turned to rental fees for city facilities, the final agenda item.

The first item, vacation rental properties, took off in a different direction than was originally intended but brought out some good points about owners not paying taxes on their rentals. By one unofficial estimate, only a third are following the rules.

There was back-and-forth talk about the problem of overseeing tax collections and it seems the state tax commission is the obvious choice for the job.

An untold number of short-term rentals are found all over the city; an estimated 63 are listed on 3 major websites. Problems seem to be concentrated in the annexed area, where out-of-state owners rent to groups who come intent on partying. That makes life miserable for permanent residents. One woman said she and her family have to endure loud parties and trash strewn all over their property.

Renters in and around Old Town, by all accounts, are respectful of neighbors, according to people who offered comments.

The bottom line on short-term rentals, as pointed out by Councilman Seal, is that they’re ‘all illegal’ right now. Unregulated, just like golf carts we see all over the place. Public hearings would be required to change that. In the meantime, long-suffering residents should put the police department on speed dial.

Other annexed area problems that won’t go away are people taking up residence in RVs and travel trailers where they’re not supposed to. First comes a power pole, then a sewer line and then it’s a homestead. The city has a heck of a time catching these people, even with help from City Attorney Rafferty.

The consensus seemed to be toward stronger enforcement by the city.

Since last night’s gathering was a workshop, no action was taken. I’ll post Tuesday’s council agenda when it’s available.