City staff members are working on a slew of projects to help address the affordable housing crisis in Durango, including increased tracking of illegal vacation rentals, an update to the comprehensive plan and a character district plan.
“Housing is just an imperative,” Councilor Dick White said.
The planning department on Tuesday updated the Durango City Council on housing projects and what can be accomplished by city elections in April.
A contract with Host Compliance to track illegal vacation rentals, which decrease the number of homes for residents, is working well, Planner Scott Shine told the council.
The company collects data on vacation rentals listed online including addresses and owners’ names and that information can be compared with city records.
The city has permitted 78 vacation rentals and Host Compliance has identified 135 rentals; some of these are legal because they are available for 30 days, Shine said.
Thus far, the city has identified 18 illegal rentals and plans to send them cease-and-desist letters.
City staff members are also working on an update to the comprehensive plan and character district studies, said Community Development Director Kevin Hall. The comprehensive plan will guide the city’s overall direction, and the character districts will help set guidelines for development in specific areas such as north Main Avenue and Camino del Rio.
The update to the comprehensive plan is scheduled to be finished in April shortly before elections, but changes to the land-use code as a result of the character districts studies will require more time.
Councilor Dean Brookie encouraged work from staff members aiming to make north Main Avenue a walkable and bikable area with more mixed-use housing. He noted the area is already redeveloping.
“We are also losing properties on north Main, one by one, that are not part of our overall vision,” he said.
mshinn@durangoherald.com
