SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. – There is one certainty in South Lake Tahoe – when Vacation Home Rentals (VHRs) are on the agenda of the City Council and Board of Supervisors, expect hours of discussion.

This was again the case on Tuesday when the South Lake Tahoe City Council held a public hearing during its meeting to amend the current VHR ordinance. They had two possible scenarios to vote on: removing the 150-foot buffer between VHRs, with a cap of 1200 VHRs allowed in residential areas, or prohibiting VHRs from being adjacent to another permitted VHR.

VHRs are always a divisive topic at council meetings, one that won’t be solved without compromise – and three councilmembers attempted to reach that by voting in favor of an update to the ordinance that caps VHRs at 900 in residential areas (not counting the 500 in the tourist core), and no buffer distances. Mayor Cody Bass and Councilman Scott Robbins opposed the motion.

That new proposed ordinance will come back before the council on March 10 for a vote.

With the overturning of Measure T, the voter-approved measure that banned all VHRs in residential neighborhoods, a new ordinance was created with a “blank slate” to address all issues, as Mayor Bass says.

One issue many have with the current ordinance is the 150-foot buffer. Those who were in good standing before Measure T have reapplied for a permit, and within the time it takes to get all of the required additions and inspections, someone within the 150-feet beats them to it. The applicant left in the cold can then bring their issue before the Planning Commission and appeal, once they pay the required fee, though no one has been successful. Though not in an ordinance, perhaps an applicant can be approved pending the inspections, and have 60 days (or something like that) to get them completed, then nobody is left without a permit after spending hundreds of dollars on required upgrades.

Mayor Bass and some of the other council members thought a committee or workshop was needed to work on the VHR ordinance, but over the last several years, with several different city councils, there have been several public discussions on the issue, with nothing successful in reducing discourse and a continued divide in the community.

Renting a VHR while on vacation is a popular travel option around the world, and South Lake Tahoe is not alone in creating ordinances or outright banning them.