After nearly a year of moratoriums, a voter referendum, and marathon council meetings, Ocean City officials say they are eager to put the town’s bitter short-term rental debate to rest — except no one can agree on what the final decision should look like.
“I think it’s time to resolve the issue and move forward,” Mayor Rick Meehan said Monday night, closing another lengthy City Council discussion that left most major questions unanswered.
The fight over short-term rentals has been narrowly focused on R-1 residential and mobile home zoning districts, which together account for just over 300 of the resort’s roughly 9,000 licensed short-term rentals. Still, the issue has dominated local politics, pitting property owners and residents against city leaders concerned about neighborhood character.
The issue has already been solved. Last year voters denied the Town of Ocean City the ability to implement short term restrictions on R1 and Mobile Home districts. THE ISSUE HAS BEEN SETTLED BY VOTERS ALREADY, CONVERSATION OVER !!!!