The City of West Columbia is considering a variety of new regulations on short-term rentals.

The city council’s first reading of the ordinance was during the June 2 meeting. The city’s intention to pursue new regulations was announced in a resolution earlier this year.

The existing rental regulations in the city do not mention short-term rentals. The proposed update would add a specific section detailing regulations for this type of rental while updating some pre-existing regulations to include short-term rentals as well.

A short-term rental is a property rented out for periods less than 30 days. Common providers include Airbnb and Vrbo. Earlier this year on the other side of the river, the City of Columbia passed an update to its existing short-term rental regulations and a new rule limiting where these rentals could operate.

Feedback in support of the ordinance came primarily from residents living near short-term rentals, while opponents were usually those wanting to rent them out, West Columbia Councilmember Jimmy Brooks said.

According to Mayor Pro-Tem Mike Green, 15 of the 32 responses received before the meeting were opposed to the ordinance.

The first of the new regulations would ensure that short-term rental owners or a designated agent be on call at all times to handle issues with the property. The owner or agent would also need to verify the identity of their guests and provide them a packet listing the city’s rules. The rental’s address and the contact information for the designated agent in charge would need to be provided to the owners of adjacent properties and to the relevant homeowners association if one exists in the area.

Occupancy would be capped at two people per bedroom, making an exception for children less than five years old. The booking would need to be made by someone over 21 and last for two nights or more.

The proposal demands one off-site parking spot per bedroom and prohibits overnight street parking by the guests. It also bans parking on grassy or landscaped areas of the property and parking in a way that blocks traffic or sidewalks.

The council proposed a list of amendments to be considered on the second reading of the ordinance.

The first would establish a 9 p.m. cutoff for any guests above the two-per-bedroom limit.

“[If] you roll up and there are 16 people at a house that’s authorized to have six people, 10 folks have got to leave after 9,” Mayor Tem Miles said. “That’s the way you would enforce it.”

Another amendment asks for rental owners to install a noise-monitoring device that would alert the owner and law enforcement if noise at the property reached 80 decibels.

One amendment would restrict people from booking a short-term rental within 50 miles of their own primary residence. The City of Columbia passed a similar regulation in its ordinance. Like the requirement to book more than one night at a time, this regulation looks to prevent locals from using short-term rentals for parties.

Property owners who purchased a home to run as a short-term rental prior to the discussions on new regulations may get a break.

The council suggested an amendment to exempt owners who purchased their property up to six months prior from the pending ordinance doctrine the city put into place on Jan. 6. A pending ordinance doctrine allows local governments to refuse permits for the use of land if that usage would conflict with pending legislation, according to the Municipal Association of South Carolina.

“It’s intended to be a very limited amount of redress to provide some remedy to folks who purchased property during the time we had put the pending ordinance doctrine in place,” Miles said. “And they didn’t have notice that we were going to restrict their ability to do that.”

The last amendment would exempt owner-occupied short-term rentals from zoning restrictions in the ordinance. Other regulations would still apply.

Miles also requested that city staff bring information on how to enforce the regulations to the next meeting involving short-term rentals.

The city council did not set an exact date for the issue to be taken up again.

It is important to get the regulations through in a timely manner, but it is just as important to get it right, Brooks said.

“I have no issue with our administration taking their time,” Brooks said. “But I would really like to see this done as quickly as we possibly can.”

The next regular council meeting is scheduled for July 7.