The Council of the Township of Whitewater Region received comments from the public at the public meeting and direct staff to bring back a planning report to the June 22, 2022 Council meeting with recommendations on how to proceed with the zoning by-law amendment intended to permit the conversion of the existing garage into a two-bedroom bunk house each with a bathroom on the subject property.
Planner Ivan Burton presented the amendment to Council.
“This accommodation is primarily used as an Air-bnb.” he said, saying the current garage “doesn’t allow for this bunky or commercial tourist style use.”
The main property was created in 2010.
“The goal here by the occupant is to increase the occupation load by two additional bedrooms.” Burton said.
He said that the municipal agreement doesn’t speak to short-term rentals and that the Township’s bylaws don’t speak to tourist commercial uses.
“Council has approved in the past a bunkhouse on Muskrat Lake in 2008, but there were were no cooking facilities or such.”
The applicant was not in attendance.
Councillor Mackay asked if the septic was big enough for the two bathrooms.
Burton said that “was not currently sized for those accommodations” and the applicant was making plan to expand that.
Councillor Nicholson asked about public comments, which Clerk Carmen Miller said there were two, that ‘would be distributed to” Planner Burton, who had just returned from leave.
Councillor Nicholson asked how this tied into the Comprehensive Zoning By-law review regarding commercial and residential zoning.
“My concern is just appreciating what this does to this residential area, and how do we view this compared to someone who just had extra family.”
Councillor Olmstead said he was “still not up to the restrictions of Air-Bnb”, and asked if it required a complete rezone.
Burton said he would bring back ‘a more fulsome recommendation from staff” on June 22 with a recommendation to approve or disprove a change to policy regarding Air BnB.”
Councillor McLaughlin said he would ‘save his comments’ until the 22nd.
The motion was carried.
