The Empire Village Council voted Tuesday night to approve a short term rental (STR) registration ordinance and a related zoning amendment, capping off years of debate over how the village should regulate rentals amid concerns about housing stock and neighborhood character.
The STR registration ordinance passed 6-1, with council member Meg Walton casting the lone dissenting vote. The zoning amendment, which clarifies the definition of “transient” occupancy in the zoning code, passed by a narrower 5-2 margin, with Walton and March Dye voting no.
“The village council agreed to start with a registration ordinance,” council member Maggie Bacon said, urging the other council members not to let the debate reopen old divisions. “Our residents spoke loud and clear to us. Lower the temperature, take it slow, make decisions on behalf of the entire community that we serve. Unite us, don’t divide us.”
The registration ordinance requires short term rental owners to register annually with the village, pay a fee and provide emergency contact information so that someone can respond if problems arise at the property. It does not include a cap on the total number of STRs allowed in the village, though several council members and residents described the ordinance as a starting point rather than a final answer.
Public comment before the vote reflected the same divide that’s shaped the issue over the last several monthly meetings. Multiple residents said that STR conversions are shrinking the village’s year round housing stock and pushing people out and therefore a cap is needed. Other residents countered the point by saying that the disclosure requirements amount to an “unreasonable burden” and raised concerns about the registration data being used for “surveillance” beyond the village’s stated intent. Another resident pointed out that STRs support local restaurants and businesses.
Walton, who voted against both measures, argued the ordinance lacks the teeth to actually work.
“No enforcement mechanism, no penalty, no structure, no violation process…no designated enforcement authority,”she said. “Without these elements the village cannot reliably compel compliance.”
She pointed to missing standards on trash, parking and noise, and said that requiring a “good neighbor guide” doesn’t guarantee anyone follows it.
“As drafted, the ordinance postpones rather than resolves the core regulatory questions that exist currently,” she said. Despite voting “no”, Walton made a motion that the council commit to following up on residents’ concerns. “I would hope as a follow up, we would commit to answering some of the questions that have been brought up and at least indicate that we will be advocating for some standards,” she said. Her motion passed unanimously.
The zoning amendment drew a sharper split, though Bacon described it as simple clarification. She told the council that the word “transient” in the ordinance has always been understood to refer to STRs and that the amendment only clarifies that in the text. She also emphasized that the changes do not open up STRs to every zoning district.
“This came about almost 100% because we have a zoning ordinance that is considered permissive and our zoning administrator felt the word ‘transient’ was not clear enough,” Bacon said. “There is nothing in the zoning ordinance that changes what exists today.”
Dye disagreed and argued that the amendment’s real world effect would be far broader than assumed.
“This zoning amendment… would effectively allow short term rentals in every dwelling unit in the village with no regulation at all, other than the need to register, now that we passed that,” she said. “I cannot state how strongly I believe that this will harm our village.”
Dye argued for guardrails and suggested sending the amendment to the village attorney for further review. The council moved ahead regardless, passing it 5-2.
With both measures now in place, the village is expected to begin moving forward with the STR registration process, though specifics on how they will proceed were not finalized at Tuesday’s meeting.
