We read William Smith’s recent letter to the Signal. In the interest of full disclosure, he is our neighbor and we allow others to rent our home when we are not there.

We purchased our home 10 years ago when we couldn’t find a place to rent for a family vacation. The property was unmaintained and unoccupied for the five years before and was significantly damaged.

Because we struggled to find a good place for our family, we decided to share our repaired home with others in the same predicament.

We are not sure why Mr. Smith did not include several realities in his hypothetical situation. He can call the property manager directly. All neighbors of permitted short-term rentals, the Smiths included, have this contact information. Like most who provide family-friendly accommodation, we do have minimum stay requirements. The biggest group using our home is our own family. When family and friends use the house, there is no one to call. Families like ours own STRs.  Out-of-state businesses own the hotels.

Similarly, 4-221 only eliminates short-term rentals out of town. Eliminating the rural STRs will probably cause higher demand for STRs in the incorporated areas, where most readers live. We suggest residents vote “no” so the owners of beach houses, like us, share the county tourism burden and generate tourism dollars benefiting all county residents.

Ed Toews

Warrenton