Posted on: Sunday, February 22, 2004
Illegal rentals divide residents
By Kelly Yamanouchi
Advertiser Staff Writer
It's no secret that on the Windward side of O'ahu thousands of otherwise law-abiding citizens are flouting county regulations by operating illegal bed-and-breakfasts and vacation rentals.
The bed-and-breakfast market is a growing part of the state's No. 1 industry, and provides visitors with a more intimate alternative to large hotels.
But the conflicts between bed-and-breakfast owners and their neighbors continue. And now with a push from state lawmakers, the city government is considering getting stricter with bed-and-breakfasts.
That's welcome news to residents who want to keep the number of tourists down in quiet beachside neighborhoods, particularly in Kailua and Waimanalo. But not to others who see bed-and- breakfasts as vital supplemental income helping to meet high housing costs.
David Bettencourt, a lawyer who lives in Waimanalo, wasn't pleased when a vacation rental opened up behind his house.
"Waimanalo has been deluged with bed-and-breakfasts," Bettencourt said. "We don't want these people in the community. This is a serious issue for those of us that actually want to live in our communities."
But others, like Susan Bryson, who operates a legal bed-and-breakfast in Kailua, say the city should legalize existing operations and do a better job of regulating them.
"It's better to legalize them than to try and make all of these people criminals," said Bryson, who has two permits for the rooms she rents out. "These are just mom-and-pop businesses."
A bill in the state Legislature to require the city to legalize and tax bed-and-breakfasts and use additional revenue to help the homeless died in committee last week, said Rep. Cynthia Thielen, R-50th (Kailua, Mokapu), who was part of the group that introduced the bill.
"The concept would have caused more problems for neighborhoods than it would have solved, so it appropriately died," Thielen said.
Even though it failed, it sent a message to the city government to get control of the situation before the state takes over.
In the 1980s, the city allowed bed-and-breakfasts and vacation rentals to register and become legal, but that window closed in 1990 to prevent the proliferation of the units.
"I have no idea what made them think that all of this would just go away," said City Council member Barbara Marshall, who represents Kailua, Waimanalo and most of Kane'ohe and has been studying how to address the problem for the past year.
On O'ahu there are about 59 legal bed-and-breakfasts and 1,001 vacation rentals with an off-site owner, according to Marshall. But she estimates tens of thousands are operating illegally. A Google Internet search for "Windward O'ahu bed and breakfast" turned up more than 2,000 Web pages.
The large number of bed-and- breakfasts "have a significant impact on the character of neighborhoods," said Eric Crispin, director of the city Department of Planning and Permitting. Residents complain about people going in and out of their neighborhoods as well as parking problems, he said.
"We've been talking about ways of addressing a fair and equitable solution to recognizing the need for bed and breakfasts without encouraging a wholesale change of neighborhoods," Crispin said. "Hopefully within the next couple of months we'd be coming out with something to propose."
He said discussions involve "how do you legitimize the use of homes for bed-and-breakfasts where it's appropriate, and how do you do so in a way that's fair to all those involved?"
Crispin said a major problem with the status quo is enforcement: Inspectors must prove the property is being rented out as a bed-and-breakfast and not just to visiting friends or relatives. Once that is proven, a notice of violation is issued — and for those that don't comply, the department's fines generally start at $50 a day for a first offense and increase to $1,000 a day if the owner has been cited more than five times.
The issue divides many Windward residents.
"There's a definite split in Kailua," said Marshall.
Some feel there's a strong need for bed-and-breakfasts in Kailua for visitors who want to stay outside of Waikiki.
With others, "there's a 'how-dare-you' argument" of "it's my property and I can do what I want with it," Marshall said.
Another reason more people are turning their houses into bed-and- breakfasts is the increase in the cost of housing, Marshall said. "People have been having a harder and harder time paying their taxes, so they see this as a way to boost their own income."
"Then there's the other people who say no, darn it, Kailua's a residential community, Waimanalo's a residential community, we don't want this traffic in there, we don't want this commercialization, if you will, of our communities," Marshall said. "We get constant complaints."
Whether the city decides to clamp down on bed-and-breakfasts or legalize them, Marshall wants a law that can be enforced.
"I don't think we can continue to permit people (to flout a law that's in the books) just because they want to," Marshall said. "These people advertise quite blatantly on the Internet."
One of the first steps she is considering is requiring legal operators to include their permit numbers on their Web site and make it an automatic violation if they do not, to help enforce the law.
Even that is certain to generate controversy. No bed-and-breakfast rule change is likely to please everyone. And that can give pause to any politician.
As Marshall says, "I'm trying very hard to figure out if there's a win-win."
Reach Kelly Yamanouchi at 535-2470, or at kyamanouchi@honoluluadvertiser.com.
