The Prince George Chamber of Commerce is recommending that the city opt out of the province’s new short-term housing rules.
Citing a need for an inventory of rooms and/or suites for hospital staff and construction crews coming to Prince George to fill term positions, the chamber says the city should execute its right to not have to enforce provincial legislation which would prohibit property owners from renting out accommodation space in properties that are not part of the owner’s primary residence.
“The Prince George Chamber of Commerce recognizes the provincial need for long-term rentals to address a long-term housing shortage for residents throughout the province, for clear and consistent rules within jurisdictions for short and long-term rentals, and for support for municipalities in enforcing provincial legislation and municipal by-laws on short-term rentals, said Ron Camp, chair of the chamber’s advocacy committee.
“However, provincial needs are not uniform. While all regions of the province appear to be facing long-term housing shortages, not all regions or municipalities are facing the same pressures from tourism as the Lower Mainland, Squamish (and) Kelowna.”
Camp says Prince George is not alone in needing other types and proportions of short- and long-term housing to meet the needs of the community.
“Municipalities such as Prince George need a higher proportion of housing suitable for two to three month stays for locum health care workers, construction workers, and others on short term assignments in and around Prince George,” he said.
“For these reasons, the Prince George Chamber of Commerce encourages the province to take into consideration regional workforce issues in defining and limiting the number of short-term rentals by location.”
The Short-Term Accommodation Act, which takes effect on May 1, 2024, also requires online booking platforms like booking.com and Expedia to share booking data with the province starting next summer. Short-term rental hosts will also have to join a provincial registry and a government-run compliance and enforcement unit will be established to make sure rules are being followed.
City council, at its Dec. 4 public meeting, instructed city staff to report back on how what needs to be done to opt out of the new short-term rental rules, a decision the chamber supported.
The province will allow municipalities with 10,000 or more residents to not be part of the primary residence legislation provided that municipality has a rental vacancy rate of three per cent or more. According to the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation, the current vacancy rate in Prince George is 3.7 per cent.
