Subject:
Title
Case No. LDR-24-04 (First Public Hearing)
An ordinance of Pinellas County, Florida, providing for the amendment of the Pinellas County Land Development Code, Chapter 138 - Zoning, related to definitions, a certificate of use program, standards, and inspections for consistency with the Florida Building Code and Florida Fire Prevention Code for Short Term Rentals. (Legislative)
label
Recommended Action:
Recommended Action
Conduct a public hearing and take public comment on Case No. LDR-24-04.
An ordinance of Pinellas County, Florida, providing for the amendment of the Pinellas County Land Development Code, Chapter 138 for Short Term Rentals (STR).
• This is the first of two required public hearings updating Sec.138-3232 STR.
• Without mitigating standards, STRs in residential neighborhoods can lead to disproportionate issues such as excessive occupancy, noise, trash, and parking.
• The proposed Ordinance, supported by robust 3rd-party technology, are intended to bring greater accountability with a Certificate of Use requirement.
• An educational campaign will be launched in Spring 2025 ahead of the Certificate of Use requirement to be deployed in April 2025.
• The Local Planning Agency recommended approval of the Ordinance (vote 4-0). No one from the public appeared in support or opposition.
• This ordinance change, by itself, has no fiscal impact on Pinellas County. The fees collected with the initial Certificate of Use and Building Inspection(s) and annual renewal thereafter will cover the total costs of the STR program. The Fiscal Year 2025 Adopted Budget includes revenues of $1,133,500.00 consisting of $850,000.00 from Code Enforcement and $283,500.00 from Building Permits.
Body
Strategic Plan:
Foster Continual Economic Growth and Vitality
4.3 Catalyze redevelopment through planning and regulatory programs
Deliver First Class Services to the Public and our Customers
5.2 Be responsible stewards of the public’s resources
Summary:
Summary
The updated ordinance proposes to bring greater accountability to short term rental (STR) owner/operators within unincorporated Pinellas County to preserve the highest quality of life within residential neighborhoods and to bring an increased awareness and compliance with the Florida Building Code and Florida Fire Prevention Code. The regulation of STR’s will fall under the Code Enforcement Division with support from the Building Division.
The following is a summary of updates:
• Purpose and Applicability - individual rooms within owner occupied properties is deleted from the section as the State does not license individual rooms.
• Areas Embraced - this section clarifies the geographical jurisdiction of the ordinance.
• Definitions - added to clarify key terminology used throughout the ordinance.
• Mandatory Certificate of Use - this section is the key provision that will deliver greater accountability and will be supported by 3rd party technology with the capabilities of “address identification” of STR’s and continual monitoring of host platforms for compliance purposes. Inspections are part of the Certificate of Use process.
• Standards - Minimum Life/Safety Standards enumerated for consistency with the Florida Building Code and Occupancy regulated by bedroom count (2 per bedroom) plus 2 persons in common area. Children under 12-years of age not included in occupancy calculation.
• Inspections - occur at initial Certificate of Use application and every 2-years thereafter to demonstrate meets minimum life/safety standards.
• Advertisement - this is a tool to support the Mandatory Certificate of Use and compliance monitoring.
• Enforcement - updated to have broader application and consistency with the Pinellas County code.
• Consistency - Standard STR language throughout the Pinellas County code.
The Certificate of Use program is targeted to be effective April 1, 2025. An educational campaign will be launched in the spring of 2025 including notification to the 2,700 +/- STR owner/operators in the unincorporated county to the requirement of a mandatory Certificate of Use starting in April 2025.
Body
Background Information:
The LPA recommended approval of the Ordinance during their January 8, 2025, public hearing (vote 4-0). No one appeared at the hearing and no correspondence was received.
Fiscal Impact:
The fees associated with the short term rental program are correlated to the costs of building and maintaining the short term rental program operations inclusive of additional code enforcement personnel, expanded code enforcement hours, initial costs and annual subscription of 3rd party technology and communications plan implementation.
Staff Member Responsible:
Kevin McAndrew, Director, Building & Development Review Services
Partners:
N/A
Attachments:
LPA Report
Ordinance - Clean Version
Ordinance - Redline Version
Legal Ad
Business Impact Statement
Forward Pinellas Consistency Letter
PowerPoint Presentation