Highlands East defers short-term rental document

By Sue Tiffin

Published Nov. 13 2018

Highlands East council opted to hold on to a draft of short-term accommodations terms of reference which includes the mandate goals for 2019 – 2022 role and organization of the short-term accommodations committee and council reports guidelines until a new council is in place.

“Well considering all the input we’ve had from interested parties the public residents and property owners I would suggest that we defer approving terms of reference until the new council has convened” said Deputy Mayor Suzanne Partridge during the Nov. 7 council meeting.

“I think that every committee we’ve ever struck every advisory committee we’ve ever struck had input into the actual thing before it came before council” said Councillor Cec Ryall. “What went wrong with the one that we had right now is it went on for a year and a half or two years before it came to council.

“I truly believe that if we are going to select a committee that is going to determine where we stand on the regulation of short-term accommodation that the committee that is going to work on that should have some input as to what exactly is going to be involved. Not only should it be deferred until council can do it but I think it should be deferred until the committee has the chance to look at it and say ‘yes we agree with it’ ‘no we don’t agree with it’ ‘here’s a change we’d like to make’ and then that can come before council in a more constructive way.

“Because what basically happens then is that everybody knows what we’re working on as opposed to a group of people who are going to be given a mandate that they may or may not agree with.”

“We can defer it until after the new year it doesn’t have to be right now” said Mayor Dave Burton.

“I really like the idea of having the committee have input into the terms of reference” said Partridge.

Council received the report opting to discuss it further in an upcoming council meeting.

Advertisements for council-appointed committees are currently posted. Applications will be accepted up to 12 noon on Nov. 21. Council appointments will form part of the Dec. 6 regular meeting of council.