Sec. 30-697.1. - Short-term rental regulations.
The following conditions are applicable to all short-term rentals in all districts:
(1) The number of short-term renters over the age of 18 years occupying or present within any short-term rental shall not exceed the lesser of eight persons, or the maximum number permitted by the most recent edition of the Virginia Uniform Statewide Building Code.
(2) No short-term rental operator shall rent a short-term rental to one or more short-term renters, unless at least one of the short-term renters is 18 years of age or older.
(3) Only a short-term rental operator may operate a short-term rental. For each short-term rental, the corresponding short-term rental operator shall submit a letter to the Zoning Administrator with contact information for the short-term rental operator, including such operator's name, permanent mailing address, primary contact phone number and, if applicable, an electronic mail address, an acknowledgement from the short-term rental operator confirming the operation of the dwelling unit as a short-term rental, and for condominiums and co-ops, evidence that the condominium or co-op board has approved a request to use the dwelling unit as a short-term rental.
(4) Each short-term rental operator shall provide to the Zoning Administrator and conspicuously post within the short-term rental a floor plan of the layout of the dwelling unit, on which floor plan the short-term rental operator shall label the following:
a. The use of each room;
b. The occupancy level of sleeping rooms and cooking facilities;
c. The location and size of emergency egress and rescue openings; and
d. The location of fire and carbon monoxide detectors.
(5) Smoke detectors shall be present in compliance with the current edition of the Virginia Uniform Statewide Building Code.
(6) A fire extinguisher shall be present in compliance with the current edition of the Virginia Uniform Statewide Building Code.
(7) Carbon monoxide detectors shall be present in compliance with the current edition of the Virginia Uniform Statewide Building Code.
(8) Prior to operation of any dwelling unit as a short-term rental, the owner of the dwelling unit shall obtain a certificate of zoning compliance for the short-term rental use in accordance with the conditions set forth in Article X, Division 3 of this chapter.
(9) Every certificate of compliance for a short-term rental use shall expire 730 days after the date it is issued. No sooner than 30 days prior to such expiration, any short-term rental operator who wishes to maintain their short-term rental use may apply for a new certificate of zoning compliance for such use.
(10) All advertisements for any short-term rental shall include the active certificate of zoning compliance for such short-term rental.
(11) Under no circumstances shall the issuance of a certificate of zoning compliance by the Zoning Administrator be construed as abrogating, nullifying or invalidating any other provision of law; any deed covenant or property right; or any property owners' association bylaw.
(12) For multifamily dwellings, a maximum of ten or one-third of the dwelling units, whichever is lesser, on the lot shall be permitted as short-term rentals, except as provided in section 30-697.2.
(13) No short-term rental operator shall agree to more than one booking transaction during the same period or any portion thereof that results in reservations for two or more separately-booked short-term renters to occupy the same short-term rental at the same time.
(14) No short-term rental operator shall offer, provide, advertise or permit use of a dwelling unit for any commercial use that is prohibited by law.
(Code 2015, § 30-697.1; Code 2020, § 30-697.1; Ord. No. 2019-343, § 1(30-697.1), 6-22-2020; Ord. No. 2023-235, § 2, 9-25-2023)
