Laurels & lances: A tale of two ordinances
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Laurel: To taking time. In Murrysville, elected officials aren’t rushing into an ordinance that would address short-term home rentals.
Council is taking time to debate what needs to be regulated and what doesn’t when it comes to homeowners making their properties available through services like Airbnb or VRBO. It’s an idea that has been on the table for months.
They are balancing the idea of placing limits versus making it a simple permitting process. They are weighing concerns about some rentals equating to operating a business in a residential area not zoned for such activity.
It’s smart to consider some kind of oversight after an Airbnb party in Pittsburgh in 2022 erupted into gunfire, with multiple people injured and two minors killed.
The question will continue to linger as council is split on the idea of what needs to be reined in, although everyone seems to agree on the idea of permitting. Additional debate will happen as the idea of just what to do is refined.
A government body having civilized conversation to decide what is best for everyone should definitely happen more often.
Lance: To not discussing anything. Then there’s Kiski Township.
Supervisors there wanted to talk about an ordinance that would govern what animals might not be welcome in the municipality. It wasn’t a vendetta against dog owners or cat lovers. It came after two back-to-back incidents of alligators in the Kiski River. Both gators were believed to be pets either dumped or accidentally released.
Nothing was being voted on Wednesday. It was just up for discussion, with a model ordinance in hand that could be marked up, revised and debated for months before action was taken.
But a large crowd showed up, calling the action unnecessary and too broad. They said they didn’t trust the supervisors and didn’t want to surrender their rights.
Supervisors surrendered, backing away from the proposal. Supervisor Dylan Foster ripped up a copy of the ordinance and said “I don’t want to ever talk about it again.”
This isn’t the way things should ever happen in government. Was it good that people wanted their voices heard? Absolutely. What is unfortunate is that they didn’t allow the process to play out.
Instead of discussion about what people want, what they don’t want, what is needed and what isn’t, the situation ended with bad feelings and no exchange of ideas.