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Letter to the Editor: Long-term residents who rent a room should be exempt of regulations

Patty Blank
Summit County

Ten full years I have shared my two-bedroom condo via Airbnb. One or two guests stay in my master suite while I use the guest room. With over 600 bookings so far, I can honestly say I never opened my home to someone I wouldn’t welcome back. We communicate numerous times prior to arrival. I share important data on snow tires, weather, hydration, airport shuttles and much more. Upon arrival, I share my favorite restaurants, hiking trails and local events. I encourage them to drink my tap water instead of bottled water. I have four full guest books and hundreds of raving reviews. I have been a Superhost for eight years, ever since they created that honor. 

It is a certain type of guest that decides to stay in a private room of a house. They are clean, quiet, respectful and many have returned and became lifelong friends. I know the names of each and every guest before they arrive. Never, ever does it cross their minds to trash my home, throw a party, leave the garbage outside the front door, speed through my parking lot or play loud music. They treat my place better than they do their own homes. My neighbors never know if I have guests or not.

Now explain to me why the Summit Board of County Commissioners has included homeshares in their 35-booking cap? These hosts are a different breed. The majority of stays are for one or two nights. I swear including homeshares will not eliminate the disgruntled neighbors, open up workforce housing or offer long-term rentals. All this will do is add to the problem by crushing the dreams of every homeshare host. 



Why would commissioners want to hurt so many locals that are following all the rules? 


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