Zoning Issues Spark Spirited Discussion at City Meeting

Should Cascade allow short-term home rentals? That question sparked a spirited discussion at the Oct. 19 Town Council meeting.

Sherri Clinger read a letter to the council, explaining that the sale of their 5,200-square-foot home is being hindered because town ordinances prohibit short-term rental of a single-family residence. She said she has had four potential buyers in the last four months back off when they discover Cascade prohibits short-term rentals.

"This has been extremely disheartening," she said. "Why not let my prospective buyers have an AirBNB or a short-term rental? Why not let someone else buy my house and bring business to the town?" she asked. "There's nothing wrong with an AirBNB; it will bring revenue to the town."

Tara Halmes said she is a realtor with clients who want to buy short-term rentals. She said the town will have future problems if they don't equally enforce the ordinance.

Scott Clinger said he is worried that the Cascade zoning committee "is defunct," because there are people offering short-term rentals even though it is not allowed. "This renting of a room or part of a house has been going on for decades," he said. "So for people to come in and say we're not going to do it anymore just doesn't make sense. The fear is that the town will cease to exist because families won't be able to afford to live here," he said. "The ordnance process is inconsistent and needs to be re-evaluated. Let's see what the people in town want."

"Anything we can do to build the tax base without causing problems should be considered," said Channing Hartelius. "I think this community should welcome business and not try to limit it."

"Our zoning regulations are not perfect and can be changed," said Mayor Murry Moore. He suggested having the zoning committee examine the issue and then bring a recommendation to the council.

In other business:

- The council unanimously elected Robert Reissing as president.

- For the first time ever, there are no past-due bills for city water.

- The city's new water well is producing 356 gallons a minute, which is a 56 gallon per minute increase.