The town of Breckenridge has received 121 complaints about short-term rentals this year, and as the town continues to make changes to its rental policies it’s looking to be more proactive in enforcing regulations.
Of the complaints the town received this year, 78 were related to noise, 17 were related to parking, nine were related to trash and 17 were classified as nuisances, which include any complaints not concerning parking, noise or trash.
Brian Waldes, Breckenridge’s director of finance, said the town has implemented new ways to address concerns about short-term rentals over the past few years. He said it started with making sure rental owners are licensed and that their licenses are posted in their advertisements. The town also has a maximum occupancy limit for short-term rentals of two people per bedroom plus an additional four people, which is also required to be posted in advertising materials.
In an effort to ramp up proactive enforcement, the town is adding a third community service officer to its police department to help with enforcement next year. Baird said he sees all three officers working together, with about one-third of their time going toward short-term rental enforcement.
These employees are not state-certified police officers, and they mostly focus on code enforcement throughout town. Baird said during the pandemic the town has been a bit lax with some of its code enforcement, such as sign restrictions for businesses on Main Street, and this new officer will play a role as the team brings back heavier, proactive enforcement efforts.
Courtesy Summit Daily News.
