EDIT: We have added the qualifier 'absent landlord' to this petition, to clarify that we are opposed to homeowners who use our residential neighbourhoods strictly as a business.  We are not intending to target residents who occasionally rent their homes or cottages while they are not using them themselves.

Short term rentals in Georgian Bluffs and neighbouring communities are a growing problem for residents and taxpayers.

Owners of these properties are often absent and are currently allowed to run an unregulated business, charging in some cases $1,600+ per night while not creating any benefit to actual residents of our community.  This is creating many issues to individual residents and the community at large.

These impacts include:

-loss of enjoyment of property caused by what amounts to hotel guests who have no regard for our community (noise, garbage, speeding, traffic, parking, etc)

-loss of a sense of community, short term rental owners and guests have no stake in the community and often behave as such

-increased cost of policing/by law enforcement (i.e. noise complaints)

-stress to residents living next to a steady stream of partying guests

-driving up housing prices making it difficult for people who would like to live here to do so

The current practice of allowing short term rentals in homes zoned residential is allowing these impacts to be placed on local residents who need to endure these growing burdens, along with taxpayers who are covering the costs associated with increased by law enforcement.  

Please consider supporting this petition to ban short term rentals with absent landlords in Georgian Bluffs, which will be presented at the next council meeting on August 31, 2022.  We encourage you to share this petition with any concerned residents of our community to help our community get ahead of this growing problem, as has been done in Collingwood, South Bruce Peninsula, Goderich and is now being considered in Owen Sound.  

We have a beautiful community, let’s take action to maintain it and to prevent your neighbour from becoming the next party house.