Author: Park Township Neighbors

Claim:

Short term rentals are largely owned by out of state people and corporations.

Facts:

According to data provided to PTN by Park Township through a July 2023 FOIA request, short term rentals are largely owned by Michiganders.

• 41.5% are owned by Park Township residents
• 54% are owned by greater Holland residents
• 68% are owned by West Michigan residents
• 75% are owned by Michigan residents

In other words, over half of the short term rentals in Park Township are owned by hyper-local residents of greater Holland. And 41.5% of the vacation rental owners live directly in Park Township itself. Sometimes right next door to their rental! (Or to someone else’s.)

3 out of 4 vacation rentals here are owned by Michigan families and property owners. This means that Michigan owners are disproportionately and negatively impacted by the township’s decision to create an outright ban rather than enforce reasonable regulations – most of which already exist in the current code.

Claim:

Short term rentals have been illegal in Park Township since 1974. The 1974 ordinance prohibits them in residential zones.

Facts:

There are no mentions of short, medium, or long term rental properties in the zoning ordinances at all.

And there is nothing in the zoning ordinances that says any of those types of rentals are prohibited.

Rentals are simply not mentioned at all.

While we can’t speak for the drafters of the 1974 zoning ordinances, it’s likely this is because the right to rent out one’s home was assumed to be part of the bundle of rights that are granted when someone purchases real estate in the United States.