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Letter to the editor: Don’t turn Breckenridge into an exclusive, unaffordable resort

Joelle Miller
Breckenridge

Current levels of short-term rental activity outside of resort areas are impacting the availability of housing for locals and are not compatible with traditional neighborhood uses.

This is the message we heard during last month’s town hall meetings regarding housing issues in Summit County.

Summit County and all its municipalities spent years drafting regulations to legalize short-term rentals. As a result, compliance rates are high. Property owners have become responsible, are vetting guests, and anticipating and preventing problems before they occur. The number of short-term rental complaints is decreasing, as well. Residents with entrepreneurial spirits have created services to assist with renting, managing, maintaining, repairing and cleaning properties, and monitoring/enforcing rules. Others are offering services specific to short-term rental guests: food catering, chefs, grocery deliveries, photo shoots, shuttle service, snow shoveling, babysitting and gear rental deliveries.



Summit County: This is a good thing! Don’t draft new regulations that will undo all of this. Rental property owners already pay a hefty surcharge for sewer fees, sales/lodging taxes, licensing fees, 24/7 monitoring services and state sales tax license fees.

The end goal appears to reduce short-term rental profitability as much as possible so property owners choose to give up their license and convert to long-term rental, all while the local government continues to collect millions to fund long-term housing program options.



Adding fees and limiting the number of nights a property can rent will not increase affordable housing. More properties will sit empty. Rental supply will decrease, and occupancy rates will increase. Families with children will book stays in Leadville to visit Ski Cooper and avoid Breckenridge.

Keep Breckenridge’s family-oriented character, its mix of caring second-home owners and longtime residents. Don’t implement these fees and restrictions and turn Breckenridge into an exclusive resort, unaffordable to most of its current visitors.


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