INDIAN ROCKS BEACH, FL -- Flash Gordon Williamson moved down to Florida when he was 19. He rented in Indian Rocks Beach for years and eventually bought his dream home.
Little did he know, the dream would turn to a nightmare next door.
“Now we have lost our peace,” he said.
The new owners of the adjacent home told them they were going to rent it out. He and his wife got a bad feeling.
“We introduce ourselves and said, 'So, where you from?' ‘We live in Philadelphia.’ So, you moving in? ‘No, we are going to rent for a while.’”
He and his wife got a bad feeling. Now, there’s a new nuisance every single week.
“The classic was ... the wedding reception that was planned that weekend. I mean, these people came from wherever they came from, planning to get married on the beach and have a party, a reception back at this house they rented in a quiet neighborhood where they don’t live!”
Florida law prevents cities from imposing the length of time visitors can rent out a home in residential neighborhoods.
Bill Queen is the mayor of North Redington Beach. His city has an ordinance grandfathered in that requires a minimum stay of 90 days for rentals, which prevents the party problems. He’s joined other Pinellas beach mayors to fight for their rights to follow zoning laws.
“If you get rowdy in a motel, what happens to ya? You get thrown out. That doesn’t happen in these vacation rentals,” he said.
“Once you toss out those zoning laws, you allow those places to come in, then we have to start dealing with the traffic, the noise, the garbage, you know, all those issues that you have.”
Many in the Legislature point to tourism and property rights as a reason to allow this practice. That’s why they passed a state law in 2011 banning cities from strictly regulating short-term rentals.
Senator Jeff Brandes told the Tampa Bay Times he would consider advocating for a 14-day rental minimum if someone files a bill.
That’s no comfort for homeowners like Flash.
“This is happening every day, we after week, after week,” he said.
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