Mr. Mayor and Councilors of Temiscaming,

My name is Mélissa Rockburn and I live at 150 Thorne Avenue in Temiscaming, Quebec.  I understand that at this time, the changes made by the provincial government with respect to Bill 67 require the municipality to identify areas where short-term rentals in primary residences will not be permitted. I also understand that you are considering limiting rentals to a very small area and may be reluctant to the regulated Airbnb platform. 

I am writing to you today on behalf of concerned citizens. We believe that not allowing municipal citizens to offer short-term rentals limits our ability to benefit from the second largest revenue generating activity in Témiscaming: tourism, and limits our ability to create financial success for our families and our community, as it diverts this revenue to neighbouring areas that allow short-term rentals.  Finally, it limits the ability of citizens to provide temporary housing for contract workers during closures and therefore creates unauthorized short-term rentals that are not regulated.

As you know, tourism is the second largest revenue generating activity in Temiscaming. We therefore have two groups of short-term tenants. People who come to the region for work (closures, road workers, contract workers...) and people who come to the region for vacation. 

Workers:

As it is, during the closures and tourist seasons, we don't seem to have enough accommodations to offer housing to people looking to work here. Some owners are advertising on the Facebook page: Temiscaming and Area Real Estate and House/Apartment Rentals, One home is offering rent through the airbnb platform and others are advertising through word of mouth and giving their contact information to RYAM.  

Nancy Mintz who offers short term rentals in Laniel mentioned:

“ We get bombarded with these types of requests (RYAM shutdowns, the road workers, the students who work in the park and other contractors e.g Bell Canada, tree planters etc. that come to the area, particularly in outfitters high season) and typically we can’t help them because like many other we are all around 80 percent booked for 2023. We do know of a road crew that was working on the road leading to the park and they had to stay in Ville Marie. Even from Laniel to Temiscaming it’s about 42 Km. … I really feel bad for the people doing the RYAM shut down because they typically work midnights and then have to drive 42 km after their shift”

Furthermore Nancy confirmed the following:

“During 2022, we accommodated 26 workers for a total of 267 nights. We turned away 48 requests for accommodations. 

In 2021 we accommodated 25 workers for a total of 237 nights. Turned away 33 request for accommodations 

In 2020, we accommodated 17 workers for 127 nights. We turned away 28 request for accommodations 

All these business opportunities are diverted to Kipawa, Laniel, Duhamel West, Ville-Marie, not to mention the endangerment of workers who must travel far to work.

As you know, we have a housing supply and demand problem in our city, which is also a global problem right now. I am concerned that by limiting the areas where short-term rentals in primary residences will not be allowed, we will create an even bigger problem. Where will all the workers be housed? Are all of the primary residences that currently offer short-term rentals for contract workers located in the areas you have chosen? If not, the regulations now prevent them from offering this service... 

Vacation properties

The main reason people look for cottages is to get away from the city, to reconnect with nature, to spend a family vacation away from the hustle and bustle of their lives.  Since the regulated platform Airbnb came into existence in 2007. Travelers have actually changed their travel habits by gravitating towards Airbnb or other rental companies, as they are looking for accommodations with a kitchen. They want to save money by being able to cook at home, they are seeking a beautiful location and to have a local experience of the place they are traveling to.

Currently, in Temiscaming, there are three airbnb's on the waterfront. Some of them aren't available to rent during certain months as they themselves like to enjoy their family cottage.

We are fortunate to have motels, hotels and a national park in our municipality! Some may think that short-term rentals affect their business. On that note, I would say that people looking for an airbnb cottage are looking for a family getaway, they are not looking to vacation with their family in a hotel. I don't feel like it's the same demographic. People can say that short-term rentals are affecting the hotel industry's business. I would counter the pandemic has affected it the most.

According to The Zebra's January 2, 2023 article in 2020, "Airbnb experiences a 30% year-over-year revenue loss due to COVID-19 impacts." I'm sure a loss of revenue is felt throughout the tourism industry and businesses in general. 

Families who come to vacation in a short-term rental cottage also generate revenue for our community. According to Opemican National Park stats, each visitor spends, on average, $63 outside the Park.

One could easily assume that these expenses are similar to those of Airbnb guests, as they will shop in town, explore local businesses, purchase the necessary products for fishing at Pronature...

Not to mention that short-term rentals in the cottages also provide jobs for locals who oversee maintenance, management and cleaning services.

Regulated vs unregulated

As an avid Airbnb user, I really like this platform because guests are rated by the host (property owner) and the owner is also rated by the guests (visitors).  This standard allows Airbnb to hold hosts (owners) accountable for what they advertise, to be mindful of neighbours, and to ensure that the host is not a "slumlord." Airbnb hosts are usually available if there is a problem, and if they are away, they normally have someone nearby to help the guests.

This regulated system also allows the owners to choose themselves the people they will host. Indeed, guests must always contact the owner before booking to explain why they want to rent, how many people will be staying...  

One Lac Tee short-term rental owner said, "I don't want guests to come into my cottage and mess it up. I have a vested interest. It's our family cottage and I respect my neighbors. We tend to book with the same families year after year."

Because Airbnb wants to maintain its reputation, they also regulate their hosts. If you don't comply with their standards, you get kicked off the platform.

Suzanne Rowan Kelleher from Forbes Magazine wrote on June 29th 2022 an article titled: Airbnb Officially Shuts Down Party Houses For Good 

“Airbnb has announced that it is banning “disruptive parties and events,” including open-invite gatherings. “Party house” properties will continue to be “strictly prohibited,” with “serious consequences” for guests who violate the rules.

Punitive actions can range from account suspension to full removal from the platform. Last year, Airbnb suspended over 6,600 guests for violating the party ban.

We believe there is a direct correlation between our implementation of the policy in August 2020 and a 44% year-over-year drop in the rate of party reports,” according to a statement. The rental platform invites people to report parties at Airbnb properties in their area through a neighborhood support line."

In Fact in their community page: rules regulations  the platform makes it very clear that hosts need to be aware of the global party ban and they give tips to help prevent parties at the property such as: Setting expectations with guests; Getting to know your guests; Being a good neighbour…

 

This is one of their policies: “Be a good neighbour. Respect must extend beyond the Airbnb community to those around us. That respect includes avoiding disturbing neighbours with disruptive gatherings, noise, or other agitating behaviours and actions”

What we do allow:

• Host-designed rules: We encourage Hosts to clearly explain the expectations they have of their guests in their house rules, listing descriptions, and through Airbnb message threads. Airbnb sets minimum standards, but Hosts should consider including additional information or guidelines customized to their neighbourhood.
• Professional hospitality events: Only professional hospitality businesses such as hotels or bed and breakfasts may offer large scale events, provided they do not disturb the surrounding community or otherwise create a community nuisance.

What we don’t allow:

• Disruptive gatherings: Gatherings that threaten the safety of or disturb the surrounding community are not allowed, regardless of size. Learn more about our community disturbance rules, including our rules against disruptive parties and events.
• “Party house” listings: Unless hosting as part of a professional hospitality business, Hosts should not encourage or otherwise permit disruptive gatherings, parties, or events in their listing descriptions or elsewhere.
• Community nuisances: Disruptive behaviour and actions including excessive smoking around neighbours or smoking in areas where smoking is prohibited, littering, making excessive noise, or obstructing a neighbour’s access to their homes aren’t allowed.

I myself have stayed in many waterfront Airbnb's (Sheenboro, Maplehurst, Chelsea, Kipawa) When renting in a residential area, the owners always made it clear that we were in a residential area and had to be careful of the neighbours regarding parking, noise, and various city regulations.

Because we wanted positive reviews and for this host to welcome us back, we always maintained this mutual respect.

The reason I bring this up is because I believe that using such a regulated and reputable platform holds owners accountable and sets a high standard for our community. 

I myself would like to rent out our future family cottage on Lake Temiscaming. This second source of income would benefit our family, offer couples a nice getaway in our area, help stimulate our economy and help us cover the taxes, insurance and leased land fee.

Finally, I would also like to add that in order to operate an Airbnb in Quebec from their primary residence, owners must obtain a registration number from the province. This number must appear on any advertisement, contract or website related to the rental unit. 

For "secondary residences", including cottages and furnished apartments. In these cases, the tenant must register a more detailed form with the Corporation de l'industrie touristique du Québec, which oversees the province's tourism industry.

Real Estate Pulse

Working in the Temiscaming real estate market since 2020, I can say that most of the people who buy here in the region are from Ontario. We have this misconception that investors will rush in and buy everything when in fact many of the clients I meet love the area, are looking to retire in an affordable city, are looking for affordable daycare, can work from home so have moved here seeking a better quality of life, are getting away from the stress of the city and want to be connected to nature. Many clients have been looking for affordable family cottages for over three years to no avail. They don't come here to buy everything, they have finally found a family cottage or a reasonably priced home!

I understand that you want to maintain a quality of life, as do I. I love it here! But I think being too restrictive and fearful will hurt our community more than being inclusive and using the systems that already exist to help regulate short term rentals in primary residences (neighbours can complain to the police, 2 strikes, you're out) I truly believe that using regulated platforms like Airbnb will give us better standards.  

We are stronger together and have much more to gain by being inclusive. Isn't it easier to provide a larger zoning area for the benefit of the community and if there are problems, you then restrict it rather than making it so limited and then having to have arduous deliberation processes to enlarge the zones?

Mélissa Rockburn