The Planning Commission will recommend lowering the density from 40% to 30% in most permitted vacation rental areas, while increasing the density from 50% to 100% on oceanfront properties.

The changes come as the city seeks to encourage more long-term housing.

At a meeting last Tuesday, the Planning Commission proposed a waiting period of 90 days for an owner to apply for a vacation rental permit after purchase, and a two-year waiting period for vacation rental licenses on new construction in higher residential zones.

The commission also agreed to recommend the extension of a grace period from 60 to 90 days when a vacation rental property is transferred in order to give previous owners the opportunity to clear out existing reservations after a conditional use permit has been voided.

There are about 350 vacation rentals approved or in process within Seaside — and about 400 with the addition of rental condos, single-family dwellings operating as motels and bed-and-breakfasts, according to acting City Planner Jeff Flory.

The density policy is specific to the zoning and area where vacation rentals are permitted.

In the resort residential zone, there is no density requirement. In the higher residential zones — R-2 and R-3 — the density is 40% unless the property is near the oceanfront area, which is 50%. Anything below 20% in those areas may receive a vacation rental permit without Planning Commission review, as long as the property meets standards outlined in the code.

While a density reduction could affect residential zones where vacation rentals are permitted, about 90 oceanfront homes could become eligible as vacation rentals.

“I would imagine that some of those property owners want to keep their houses for themselves, just because properties are allowed to doesn’t mean that suddenly everybody’s going to,” Commissioner Kathy Kleczek said.

Kleczek said a cap of 400 vacation rentals could provide opportunities for housing for employees of all economic levels.

“It keeps it so that we aren’t going to get out of control,” she said. “And we aren’t going to continue to hemorrhage full-time, long-term housing.”

Commissioner Seth Morrisey and other commissioners said they would prefer to regulate via density.

“I think that makes more sense than an overall cap,” Morrisey said.

While rejecting the cap, the Planning Commission proposed a two-year waiting period for a vacation rental permit on new construction after the property has been issued a certificate of occupancy by the building official.

The waiting period gives homeowners “more of a feel of the community and the needs of the community before they then decide to turn it into a vacation rental,” Kleczek said.

City Attorney Dan Van Thiel said the city was on solid ground with the proposed changes.

“These are policy considerations,” he said. “I don’t know that there are many legal considerations. I watched you discuss these things. And we’re creating a record as to how we arrived at what we do from a policy standpoint. With that in mind, you can basically do whatever you want to do, within reason.”

Currently permitted vacation rentals will not be subject to the proposed policy changes, Flory said. However, if a permitted rental is sold, any new owner of that property will be subject to the policies of the Planning Commission and City Council that are in place at the time of application.

The recommendations will head to the City Council for review.