SUNDAY MAY 12 2024 TRI-CITY 7D would give counties new authority to change resi- dential zoning, including the power to phase out short-term renting. important to note, though, that even if these bill pass, nothing would happen overnight. County officials some of whom have said they want to change how short-term rentals are used and others who have previous- ly tried to change such regulations would have to adopt new rules to limit rentals. If they enact a phase-out, officials say, it would probably go into effect over several years. bill does not enact anything specific to the regulation of those proper- said state Sen.
Jar- rett Keohokalole, one of the co-authors on the Senate bill. simply makes it clear that the counties do have the au- thority to regulate vaca- Hawaii lawmakers are hoping that phasing out short-term rentals could help ease its worsening housing crisis, where lo- cals face the highest hous- ing costs in the nation and one of the worst rates of homelessness. Two bills that would allow for new regulation of accommoda- have moved readily through the state legisla- ture this spring, and if passed, could provide new avenues to limit the short- term home rental indust- ry, which has exploded in recent years across the four populated islands. But the issue has been a challenging one for offi- cials in cities and states across the U.S. including Los Angeles, New York, Nashville and Bozeman, Mont.
who have looked for ways to rein in the ballooning popularity of Airbnb and other online home rental platforms without eliminating the economic benefits that such properties draw. In Hawaii, last sum- Maui wildfires have uniquely forced attention on the housing crisis which was reaching a critical juncture even before the fires displaced thousands. Proponents of the short-term rental phase-outs hope this new sense of urgency could help push these bills into law in the coming weeks. a look at how the bills could affect locals and visitors, and how soon. The two companion bills, HB1838 and SB2919, tion rentals if they The bills essentially provide the needed legal framework for counties to limit short-term rentals in a variety of ways.
Honolu- lu officials attempted to redefine the length of a short-term rental in 2022, but a federal judge recent- ly ruled that current state law barred them from doing so. State Rep. Luke Evslin, the chair of the House Committee on Housing, said even if these bills pass, they probably eliminate short-term rent- als on the islands. Instead, Evslin said, the legislation would give local govern- ments opportunities to define the neighborhoods where tourists could rent short-term units and, ideally, free up more homes for locals seeking long-term rentals. He said it solve the growing housing crisis, but he thinks a first step to the think one of the steps that we need to take to try and solve our hous- ing Evslin said, an author of the House bill.
Kauai, for example, more units are becoming vacation rentals every year than we are building an- nually, so we have literally declining housing stock on Kauai, and the same thing is happening on Maui even The supporters include many local hous- ing nonprofits, hotel com- panies and local leaders, including Maui Council- member Keani Rawlins- Fernandez. are moving by the droves because there is no Rawlins- Ferandez said. She said taken too long for officials to regulate the short-term rental industry, which has created this challenging fight with increasingly powerful interests. also a broad swath of opponents, in- cluding local homeowners who also rent units or rooms, Realtor groups, rental alliances and rental platforms. All of these groups have a financial interest in preserving property ability to do short-term rentals.
Alex April, head of the public policy for Hawaii, expressly oppose the legislation in her state- ment to legislators, but mentioned concerns in- cluding the financial loss- es that the state could see. April also cited ongoing work between Airbnb and Hawaii counties to help limit illegal renting, which has included memoran- dums of understanding to remove properties not operating within the law. remain committed to working with you on fair and reasonable solu- tions that protect the rights of hosts and pre- serve the significant bene- fits that short-term rentals provide to Hawaii commu- statement said. Airbnb also hired Ha- former attorney general, David Louie, to argue against the bills, claiming in a lengthy testi- mony that the measures, if passed, could result in lawsuits challenging its constitutionality. Hawaii and feder- al litigation (have) recog- nized the principle that all preexisting uses of land are Louie wrote.
A judge would not accept such changes to short-term rental zoning, he argued, because of how units have operated for years, leading to stantial and unnecessary Evslin insisted that the bills are constitutional, but noted it will depend how counties chose to imple- ment possible phase-outs if any further legal fight follows. Months after the Maui wildfires, hundreds of displaced families are still living in hotels. Officials hope they will be relocat- ed to long-term housing by this summer a dead- line that has continued to be extended. Keohokalole, the state senator, said he wants to see the end of a system that has been local people out of their residential communities in favor of economic activ- seeing the wholesale conversion of residential communities in Hawaii to speculative, short-term rental devel- he said. Hawaii Gov.
Josh Green, after his annual state of the state address in Jan- uary, said he was going to put lot of to curb short-term rentals because market should be for our local according to the Associated Press. A major- ity of short-term rental owners live in Ha- waii, according to the governor. Green, in a statement to the Los Angeles Times, said he supports the two bills going through the legislature that would allow for phasing-out such rentals. would provide the counties with more tools to address vacation rentals in areas where they want these operations to a spokesperson for Green said in a statement. Green is open to addition- al changes to ensure that we can control the prolif- eration of illegal vacation rentals, to mitigate the years-long housing crisis that is causing local resi- dents, our workforce of teachers, firefighters and other essential workers, to leave the JOSHUA RAINEY A majority of short-term rental owners live in Hawaii, according to Gov.
Josh Green, who said this year that he was going to put lot of to curb short-term rentals because market should be for our local Short-term rentals could be harder to come by in Hawaii BY GRACE TOOHEY Los Angeles Times After five years of pan- demic- and snowpack- related closures, Yosemite National Park has re- opened camp- sites where visitors will have access to showers, gourmet meals and a view of the wild back country. Camping hopefuls can now enter a lottery to experience three of the five available campsites at the High Sierra Camps from June to September. The two other sites, Vogelsang and Merced Lake respectively the highest elevation camp- site and the oldest and most remote campsite, established in 1916 will remain closed throughout the 2024 season. Neither park officials nor Ara- mark, the conces- sioner, could be reached to explain why these two campsites remain closed. According to their web- site, more than 13,000 visitors stay at the High Sierra Camps each year, and another thousand backpackers passing through each year stop for food at the campsites.
a more comfortable or glamorous version of camping, has grown in popularity in the past couple of decades. Visitors have the option of paying $1,403 for a guid- ed tour of the park with a weeklong stay, or paying $172 to $185 per night to reserve a bed. been contro- versy among certain envi- ronmentalists who take a hard line against any type of development in the pristine wilderness, said Jane Simpson, chair of the leadership training pro- gram at the Angeles Chapter of the Sierra Club. But Simpson said she is glad to hear that the campsites are re- opening to the public this year. experience is said Simp- son, recalling her own High Sierra Camp visit back in 2015.
people are very hyper aware of their As an avid hiker and backpacker herself, Simp- son is used to having to carry all of her own sup- plies when visiting Yose- mite National Park. But the amenities of the High Sierra Camps allow vis- itors to leave behind tents and cooking necessities, as they have running water and three meals a day prepared by profes- sional chefs. On their website, Ara- mark and the national park service express their commitment to protecting the environment. take our role as stewards very seriously and active- ly work to protect the resources for generations to says the web- site for the High Sierra Camps. Jeff Jenkins, assistant professor of parks and protected areas at UC Sierra Nevada Research Institute, said that the National Park Service has to strike a balance between protect- ing national parks and making them accessible to everyone.
remember we saw a woman hiking the route of these High Sierra Camps that was pushing Jenkins recalled when his family stayed at the High Sierra Camps together. was able to get out there, First- time, inexperienced campers, the elderly, and families might prefer to stay at the High Sierra Camps because of the amenities. By having designated areas where semi-perma- nent shelters are set up, Jenkins said, the fice allow for a much larger swath of wilderness to remain untouched. has been constrained to most- ly the trail corridor and these areas of the wilder- ness, these said Jenkins. The urgency of miti- gating human impact on the environment has forced the National Park Service to innovate by adding features like the bear-proof lockers that prevent bears from find- ing easy food sources near human dwellings, Jenkins noted.
But the debate around these High Sierra Camps anything new. David White, the director of global sustainability and innovation at Arizona State University, de- scribes it as the mental of the national parks as they balance access and pro- tection. White said the social and cultural impact of visiting parks also helps to shift the conversation around sustainability and changing personal habits to preserve the environ- ment. For visitors, helps them to have greater awareness and understanding about crit- ical environmental issues that facing, in- cluding things like climate he said. The wonder of Yose- mite National Park never grows old for White, who has visited several times.
is some of the most spectacular natural beauty that exists anywhere in the he said. White said the scale of the natural features, and the history of the Indigenous tribes who were violently forced off the lands to make Yosemite, that still humble him today. there, you just feel as a human, you feel insignificant in an important said White. BY JIREH DENG Los Angeles Times BRIAN VAN DER BRUG Los Angeles A tent is shown at dusk at a High Sierra Camp in Yosemite National Park. The park is reopening three of the five campsites this summer.
After 5 years of closure, back again in Yosemite National Park THE AMENITIES OF THE HIGH SIERRA CAMPS ALLOW VISITORS TO LEAVE BEHIND TENTS AND COOKING NECESSITIES, AS THEY HAVE RUNNING WATER AND THREE MEALS A DAY PREPARED BY PROFESSIONAL CHEFS..
