Big Crowd Debates Proposed Law

A crowd of close to 300 turned out last Thursday night for a much-anticipated hearing before the East Hampton Town Board on a proposed town law establishing a rental registry. The new ordinance would require property owners to register with the town before advertising a rental, providing information about the number of tenants and lease term and certifying that a property met town and state safety and building codes.

Those against it, who had organized an online campaign at stoptherentalregistry.com and presented a petition to the board with 1,325 signatures, called the proposal an onerous requirement that would unfairly impact those who abide by the law. They predicted that it would have a negative impact on the rental industry and the economy without affecting overcrowded and share houses.

Advocates said it would help ordinance enforcement officers address violations, a critical need in residential areas where illegal short-term, seasonal, and year-round rentals are transforming neighborhoods.

The proposed law would not change the existing laws against share houses, repeated short-term rentals, or overcrowded houses. Instead, it would add a requirement to register with the town as a landlord, under penalty. Prospective landlords would be required to certify that their properties meet a checklist of state and local building and safety code standards.

David Betts, who heads the town’s division of public safety, said that the registry would be “very beneficial” to ordinance officers in enforcing the housing code. Seven of 10 townships in Suffolk County require landlords to register, he said.

“East Hampton needs the rental registry, to stop illegal rentals,” said Fred Weinberg of Springs. Those rentals, others said, have had a profound negative effect on many neighborhoods.

Tom Steele and other opponents, citing private property rights, raised questions of the constitutionality of what he called “a workaround” in the proposed law that would allow the town to inspect registered properties. They also said the penalties for those who do not register, which include jail time, were extreme.

“I think it’s too much Big Brother in our homes and in our pocketbook,” said Kathy Weiss of Montauk. “This is invasive, intrusive, scary, frightening, and totalitarian,” said Tony Garofano, also a Montauker.

Some said the cost of bringing older properties up to current code standards would be prohibitive, and that the registry requirement would reduce legal housing stock. “You’re making it even more difficult to find a year-round rental,” said Charlie McCarron of Sag Harbor.

 Others viewed that requirement as a positive for tenants and landlords alike, who, they said, would both be assured of safe conditions. “It’s a matter of safety,” said J.B. D’Santos, an East Hampton real estate broker who agrees with the registry idea.

Many made a point of agreeing thathousing laws must be enforced. But, said Carole Campolo of Springs, “this law will offer little remedy for . . . egregious cases.”

John Keeshan, a Montauk realtor, said it was “simply a question of the methods that we use.” A rental registry, he said, “is going to punish those people who are on the side of the angels,” while having little effect on unscrupulous landlords. He suggested sharply increasing fines for housing violations.

“Current town codes, if properly enforced, are adequate,” said Marlene Dion, another realtor. “This is where your focus should be, not in taking away our civil liberties,” she told the board. “We could have a show of hands and end this tonight.”

Town Supervisor Larry Cantwell decided to take her suggestion. Though speakers’ opinions had been evenly divided, the straw poll inside the standing-room-only venue, with latecomers clustered just beyond the doors, showed opponents far outnumbering supporters. Because of the expected crowds, the hearing was moved from Town Hall to the American Legion building in Amagansett.

“If the laws that are on the books worked, we wouldn’t be here,” said Jeremy Samuelson, executive director of the Concerned Citizens of Montauk, a group with 1,600 members. He pointed to a correlation between the rise of overcrowded housing and water body pollution from septic waste and other runoff. “It’s poisoning our community,” he said. “We need every regulatory tool available to get our arms around this crisis.”

Several speakers from the real estate industry told the board that the town’s limit on short-term rentals should be reconsidered. Families seeking to vacation in East Hampton often don’t have the time or means to rent for an entire season, they said, urging that share-house rentals and family vacation home rentals be treated differently.

For many year-round residents, said Diana Schiffman, rental income is important. “Local property owners truly rely on the income so they can live here the rest of the year.” 

Speaking for the East Hampton-Sag Harbor Citizens Advisory Committee, Ilissa Meyer said that “unfortunately, there are property owners in East Hampton” who flout laws and “make extreme profit to the detriment of the community.”

Tom Bogdan, who founded Montauk United, a group backing better law enforcement in response to a chaotic summer, said that “the problem is too many people in too small an area,” and that “the root of that problem is illegal housing.”

Ellen Dooley, a registry opponent, said she had surveyed online rental listings such as Airbnb and found over 10,000 properties listed in East Hampton Town. Comparing that to the number of housing violation cases being pursued, she said, shows that fewer than 1 percent are a problem. “Maybe the town board is trying to kill an ant with a steamroller,” she said.

Debra Foster of Springs, a former town board member, agreed. “We should be targeting what the problem is,” she said. Residents who rent their houses for part of the year to augment income are “different from people who buy houses as an investment” and rent them illegally to large groups or for repeated short periods, she told the board.

“Illegal rentals are out of control,” said Robert Sherman of Montauk. Any inconvenience caused by a rental registry is “minuscule in comparison to the benefits gained,” he said.

If housing laws are not enforced, “Airbnb will be the end of the community,” said Ed Geus. “Pass the rental registry.”

Joe Kazickas, also a real estate broker, said he was not opposed to the concept of a registry, but that a registration number, which under the proposal would be required before a rental could be advertised, “should be as easy to get as a beach sticker.” As written, with a $250 fee for the number and additional fees for updates as tenants change, the law is “egregious,” he said.

The crowd, some clutching bottles of water with red, white, and blue labels bearing the logo of stoptherentalregistry.com, which were available free at the hearing, filed out at close to 10 p.m. The town board will discuss the evening’s comments at an upcoming work session before deciding how to proceed.