Tybee Alliance, a group of short-term vacation rental owners, realtors and residents, is once again suing the City of Tybee Island.The alliance is upset with the way the city has gone about updating its short-term vacation rental ordinance.”We’re filing a lawsuit just to require the city to abide by its own charter,” said Dusty Church, Chair of Tybee Alliance. “I am very disappointed the city has not been as upfront and honest as they should be.”The city voted to crack down on short-term vacation rentals after hearing some concerns from residents.”The ordinance, as best as we know, would ban vacation rentals in residential zones on areas on the island where three-fourths of the land is zoned residential,” Church said.Tybee Alliance told WJCL 22 News after the city voted to modify the ordinance back in October, they had to wait quite a while before receiving a final written version.”We were requesting versions of the ordinance for more than a month before we were presented with what was presumed to be the final version and even that version is not what was audibly provided in the council meeting,” said Cody Gay, vice chair of Tybee Island.They claim the oral modifications that were discussed in the council meeting were not included in the ordinances they were given.”The city violated their own charter so we’re suing to require them to pass law in a legal matter,” Church said. “We want to see an ordinance that is fair, we want to see a city council that is honest with the public and it responsive to the public.”WJCL 22 News reached out to the city for a response. We have not heard back yet.This is the second time Tybee Alliance has sued the city of Tybee Island.
Tybee Alliance, a group of short-term vacation rental owners, realtors and residents, is once again suing the City of Tybee Island.
The alliance is upset with the way the city has gone about updating its short-term vacation rental ordinance.
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“We’re filing a lawsuit just to require the city to abide by its own charter,” said Dusty Church, Chair of Tybee Alliance. “I am very disappointed the city has not been as upfront and honest as they should be.”
The city voted to crack down on short-term vacation rentals after hearing some concerns from residents.
“The ordinance, as best as we know, would ban vacation rentals in residential zones on areas on the island where three-fourths of the land is zoned residential,” Church said.
Tybee Alliance told WJCL 22 News after the city voted to modify the ordinance back in October, they had to wait quite a while before receiving a final written version.
“We were requesting versions of the ordinance for more than a month before we were presented with what was presumed to be the final version and even that version is not what was audibly provided in the council meeting,” said Cody Gay, vice chair of Tybee Island.
They claim the oral modifications that were discussed in the council meeting were not included in the ordinances they were given.
“The city violated their own charter so we’re suing to require them to pass law in a legal matter,” Church said. “We want to see an ordinance that is fair, we want to see a city council that is honest with the public and it responsive to the public.”
WJCL 22 News reached out to the city for a response. We have not heard back yet.
This is the second time Tybee Alliance has sued the city of Tybee Island.