'Short-term party house and ghost hotel' a problem says Oro-Medonte mayor
The issue of “party houses” continues to be a major concern for some Oro-Medonte residents, ever since a by-law aimed at limiting short-term rentals in the area was revoked.
"The short-term party house and ghost hotel is a problem," says Oro-Medonte Mayor Harry Hughes.
A problem the township will have to find another solution for now that its amended by-law to control short-term rentals has been revoked.
"The by-law was all about was simply adding a definition to the existing by-law that defined commercial," says Hughes.
He adds that they wanted to prohibit temporary accommodation of 28 days or less in a residential zone, to prevent out-of-town partiers from disturbing locals.
"We want to make sure that we have some authority in place so we can deal with them. Our issue was never with what we call the mom and pop operation, who come on a regular basis and rent their cottage for a week or two a year," Hughes says.
A few months ago, the locals created the Oro-Medonte Good Neighbours Alliance, a group pushing the town to enforce its short-term rental by-law on disruptive tenants.
"The residents that we know of who have these types of operations next to them are frightened. They're frightened for their health and safety, they're frightened for their children, and they're frightened that every weekend is going to be more of the same," says Alliance president Peter Lavoie.
On the other hand, homeowners in the area are pleased with a decision by the Ontario Land Tribunal that Oro-Medonte's amended by-law went too far.
"For most people, I know it's a way of keeping the cottage in the family, it's a way of paying taxes and the costs of maintenance and upkeep which was gone up and up," says Barry Sookman, the president of the Short Term Rentals Association.
The association says it's fully supportive of finding a middle ground to target the problem.
"My association does not condone disruptive party houses and has offered to work with Oro (Medonte) on a new and reasonable and proportionate by law," says Sookman.
Mayor Hughes says with summer quickly approaching, he hopes to find a solution before the rental season picks up.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Bodies found by U.S. authorities searching for missing B.C. kayakers
United States authorities who have been searching for a pair of missing kayakers from British Columbia since the weekend have recovered two bodies in the nearby San Juan Islands of Washington state.
Amid concerns over 'collateral damage' Trudeau, Freeland defend capital gains tax change
Facing pushback from physicians and businesspeople over the coming increase to the capital gains inclusion rate, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and his deputy Chrystia Freeland are standing by their plan to target Canada's highest earners.
'It's discriminatory': Individuals refused entry to Ontario legislature for wearing keffiyeh
Individuals being barred from entering Ontario’s legislature while wearing a keffiyeh say the garment is part of their cultural identity— and the only ones making it political are the politicians banning it.
Tom Mulcair: Park littered with trash after 'pilot project' is perfect symbol of Trudeau governance
Former NDP leader Tom Mulcair says that what's happening now in a trash-littered federal park in Quebec is a perfect metaphor for how the Trudeau government runs things.
Saskatchewan households will continue to receive carbon tax rebate: Trudeau
Households in Saskatchewan will continue to receive Canada Carbon Rebate payments, despite the province refusing to remit the federal carbon price on natural gas, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said Tuesday.
'It's just so hard to let it go': Umar Zameer still haunted by death of Toronto police officer
“It's just so hard to let it go. I mean, everyone is telling me, ‘you have to move on,’ but I know someone is not here [anymore]. So I don't know how I will move on." That’s what Umar Zameer, the man recently acquitted in the death of a Toronto police officer, told CTV News Toronto in a sit-down interview on Tuesday.
Senate expenses climbed to $7.2 million in 2023, up nearly 30%
Senators in Canada claimed $7.2 million in expenses in 2023, a nearly 30 per cent increase over the previous year.
Canucks goalie Thatcher Demko won't play in Game 2
The Vancouver Canucks will be without all-star goalie Thatcher Demko when they face the Nashville Predators in Game 2 of their first-round playoff series.
Pedestrian, baby injured after stroller struck and dragged by vehicle in Squamish, B.C.
Police say a baby and a pedestrian suffered non-life-threatening injuries after a vehicle struck a baby stroller and dragged it for two blocks before stopping in Squamish, B.C.