Metro East Sun

Belleville city officials discussed a homeowner's application to turn half of a duplex into an Airbnb rental, which led to a larger discussion about zoning changes during a recent council meeting.

The owner of the property at 410-412 East C St. is seeking to turn half the site into an Airbnb, a short-term homestay requiring a special-use permit. Before the council members discussed the measure, they heard comments and concerns from neighbors, both about the rental and the neighborhood itself. 

Alderman Joseph Hazel said he felt the issue as a whole should be dealt with and standing policy made, rather than proceeding on a case-by-case basis.

"I do believe that we do need to have an ordinance and legal review meeting," he told the board. "(It's) certainly something that can be addressed. At this point, we shouldn't be choosing winners and losers based off of how we're feeling one particular night. Airbnbs are allowed. Let the ordinance committee do their job and bring that to council, and we'll adjust legislation accordingly and then address it that way. But I don't see, just on a whim, one address to the next, we say yes here, we say no there, without any other underlying circumstances where it needs to go to ordinance."

Melinda Holt, a former representative of the neighborhood and a longtime resident of East C Street, opposed the Airbnb request, saying the change would be a “very bad fit for our neighborhood”. She mentioned at least a half-dozen burned-out and boarded-up houses within two blocks of the proposed site. 

With the area's broken infrastructure, lack of proper parking and issues of violence and crime, including a murder in the neighborhood last year, Holt said, "The answer is not bringing in strangers on a part-time basis."

She also raised concerns about Airbnb’s business model and criticized its customer service record.

After discussion, the council at first moved to deny the zoning request, with the understanding that the neighborhood was in a tight spot and needs growth and also due to reservations about working with Airbnb, a San Francisco-based company and online marketplace.

Taking into account the owners' efforts to prepare the property, however, the council then decided to table the discussion for six months to work on cleaning up the neighborhood and clarify the zoning code before making a final ruling.