Hundreds Attend Tobyhanna Special Meeting to Voice Reactions to Proposed STR Ordinance

Vast Majority Oppose Unusually Restrictive Terms, Local Businesses Cite Potential Job Losses

APR 4 2022, 7:15 am

POCONO MANOR (Tobyhanna Township) – A lawyer, an engineer, and an architect walk into a waterpark. And that’s no joke.

Among the 238 people who filled Kalahari’s Africa Ballroom, at 5:00 on March 23, to comment on Tobyhanna Township’s proposed regulation of short-term rentals, were experts who pushed back on the township’s use of the international building code as justification for limiting occupancy of vacation homes to ten persons regardless of the size of the property.

The strict limitation on total occupancy is one of the most contested of the comparatively strict regulations which the supervisors propose. So much so that, at the top of the meeting, they had their code and sewage officers address the subject. Todd Meltsch and Bill Burton, from Bureau Veritas, the company the township uses for building and zoning enforcement, and Jonathan Shupp, sewage enforcement officer, were asked to give rationales for the ten-person cap.

A number of speakers that night said it didn’t help that their explanations did not clear anything up, that they refused to clarify or answer questions, and that they left immediately after speaking, choosing not to hear or respond to the many comments made on the issue over the course of the nearly three-hour session.

Mr. Burton told the in-person crowd (plus the 101 who participated online) that the ten-person capacity limit is based on definitions “in the 2018 IBC, these homes are primarily transient in nature and they’re used as congregate living facilities and they’re used as boarding houses. That makes them R3 as long as the occupancy level remains under ten; once you go over ten it’s going to be classified as R1. There’s your answer. That’s how we come up with ten.” {Listen} He said that “R1 is defined as commercial use.”

Would you like continued coverage of local issues like this?
Our Community Journalism is possible only with support from readers like you.
Sign up today for only $3.25 a month with an annual membership!

The “IBC” Mr. Burton refers to is the “International Building Code,” which Pennsylvania has adopted as one of its building standards. Pennsylvania has also adopted the “International Residential Code.” Both are products of the International Code Council (“ICC”).

Mr. Shupp simply stated that they used the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection estimate of one gallon of septic flow per bedroom per day for non-commercial residential use. Applicants need to establish that their septic systems and drain fields are the right sizes to handle that level of use. He did not relate how that limit played into the cap on occupancy.

Bob Kidwell, a Stroudsburg attorney, representing “Tobyhanna for All” a group of vacation rental owners, residents, and businesses, was one of the speakers from the audience. Attorney Kidwell said many municipalities have adopted Monroe County’s model ordinance, most recently amended in 2019, which caps occupancy at 2 people per bedroom plus four. He recounted an October roundtable for municipalities on short-term rentals at which he was a panelist. At that roundtable, he said the towns and enforcement officers with the “2 per bedroom plus 4″ model said it was an eminently workable and enforceable regulation.

“If the basis is the IBC,” Mr. Kidwell said, “I submit that that position is misguided.” He referred to a letter he sent to the board with documentation showing “these are not boarding houses, these are not congregate living facilities. These are single-family and two-family dwellings and should be regulated as such under the IRC.”

“The IBC – the International Building Code – is completely different than the International Residential Code – the IRC,” architect Kevin Korejko told the board. “The single-family homes that everyone keeps talking about are defined in the International Residential Code. I think it’s a misinterpretation.” He noted that under the township’s approach, “you could do a long-term rental and put 30 people in the same exact house . . . using the septic system non-stop, so why would that be allowed but renting to 14 people would not be allowed?”

What’s Your Opinion About Short-Term Rentals? Let Us Know HERE.

Timothy D. Manley, a civil engineer with registrations in 16 states, told the supervisors that he disagreed with their use of septic concerns to limit occupancy. “In my personal opinion, the overloading (of septic systems) actually occurs from the long-term residents because the STR people are only using these facilities on the weekend. Which means that from Monday to Friday, there’s no water being used, the septic system has an opportunity to recharge and recover.” By contrast, he said, there is no limit of occupancy by owners or long term renters. Since they are using them every day, seven days a week, “it is more likely that the stress is happening from the long term renters.”

The official introduction and commentary to the IBC appear to support the interpretation offered by the speakers. According to the ICC,  the “scope of the International Building Code includes all buildings except detached one- and two-family dwellings and townhouses up to three stories.”

Similarly, the same section of the International Residential Code states that “this comprehensive code comprises all building . . . requirements for one- and two-family dwellings and townhouses up to three stories.”  It goes on to say that the IRC “was created to serve as a complete, comprehensive code regulating the construction of single-family houses, two-family houses (duplexes) and buildings consisting of three or more townhouse units. All buildings within the scope of the IRC are limited to three stories . . . .For example, a four-story single-family house would fall within the scope of the International Building Code, not the IBC.”  The defined scope of the IBC contains similar language. 

Proponents of the draft regulations addressed what they called “Quality of Life” issues, many expressing a view that vacation home rentals should not be permitted at all in residential areas. Many were also concerned about protecting the quality of our streams, lakes, and water supplies from over-burdened septic systems, which most township residential buildings use.

Tammy Livziey thanked the supervisors for “their commitment to the people of Tobyhanna township.” She expressed concern about preserving the “residential character” of the township neighborhoods. “The residents here are crying out for your help to keep our children safe from the influx of cars speeding through our neighborhoods, to stop the noise and pollution littering our communities and preserve the natural beauty and quiet the Pocono Mountains have always provided, to allow us to use our own common areas since there is no longer room for us at our community beaches and recreation areas.”

“Short-term rental owners have found it more profitable to pander and rent to large groups than smaller groups,” Jay Livziey said. “These large groups it is not their home, they do not care, they come and they litter, they spread trash, they park on the street.” He said ‘party houses’ are the problem. “Homeowners – they are rooted here. Short-term rental owners – only their wallets are rooted here.”

Juliet Dunham also spoke in favor of the ordinance and encouraged the supervisors to pass it quickly.

A number of local business owners asked the board to consider the impact of the highly restrictive ordinance on their businesses. Paige Tremblay owns a cleaning company with 21 employees. She told the supervisors that the ordinance would negatively impact her clients, her business, and her employees. She also said that she thought problem STRs were very few. “We need to go after the bad apples and not punish everybody; not punish the people running their rentals the way they are supposed to be.”

Ms. Tremblay also spoke about her experience in property preservation. She told the supervisors that many of the STRs were abandoned, foreclosed homes, sold to people who invested in restoring, hiring local contractors to do the work, and turning dilapidated properties into functional rentals,  bringing money into the community.

Ralph Lopez also owns a cleaning company. He has half a dozen employees. “If this passes, this would destroy our company,” he said. “We’d just go under.” Another speaker, a contractor in the area, told the board that a significant portion of his business has come from renovations to dilapidated properties purchased for use as rental vacation homes. Similarly, Jeremiah Noll, a local math teacher, said he runs a property management company with ten employees. “This ordinance would greatly affect our business,” Mr. Noll says.

Another cleaner, Catherine Zylinski, told the supervisors, “this is how I survive.” She asked them to reconsider their approach because, “you’re going to hurt a lot of people, not just the owners.” Ms. Zylinski also repeated a point made by several residents speaking against the restrictive ordinance, that long-term renters and homeowners cause many of the same kinds of problems STRs are being accused of. She related one residential customer with 25 people living in their home.

Altogether, nearly 75 speakers addressed the supervisors at the special meeting. All of them supported the regulation of vacation home rentals in the township. However, the overwhelming majority – over 70% – argued that the restrictions added by the supervisors to the work of the STR committee were too onerous.

Supervisors said that they would discuss the matter with their attorney and “go from there.” A few days after the meeting, the township advertised a new full-time position for “STR Administration.” Applications for the position are due by April 18. They have placed the ordinance on the agenda for the regular April 4 meeting.

Supervisor meetings are on the first and third Mondays of the month at 6 pm.  All meetings are held in person at the township building located at 105 Government Center Way Pocono Pines PA 18350 or virtually on goto meeting platform until otherwise advertised.  Click Here for gotomeeting access for board meetings.