SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (KELO) — The city of Sioux Falls and Minnehaha County are scheduled to discuss today an ordinance that would govern short-term rentals within the joint jurisdiction district.

The proposed ordinance would impact short-term rentals outside the Sioux Falls city limits into about three miles of the county, said of the Jason Bieber of the planning and zoning department in the city of Sioux Falls. A joint area allows the county and city to consider items such as conditional use permits for potential development and other uses.

Minnehaha County already has a short-term rental property ordinance that covers such rentals in the county and not within any municipality in the county.

County officials cited earlier this year the increased interest in short-term rentals such as through Airbnb or VRBO or another means in the county and concerns about short-term rentals as reasons why the county needed to consider an ordinance.

Although the joint jurisdiction ordinance would not cover those in Sioux Falls, the city has noted growth in the number of short-term rentals.

Bieber said the city did an inventory of short-term rentals in January. Using the lists from Airbnb and VRBO, the city determined there were 339 short-term rentals. Bieber said the city cross-referenced the two lists to ensure none were counted twice. The city counted 28 in 2016.

Sioux Falls looked at a short-term rental ordinance roughly six to eight years ago but did not pass an ordinance, Bieber said.

The National League of Cities said in a report on short-term rental, “Regulation of short-term rentals has proven to be an important and effective tool in making short-term rentals work for all parts of the community.”

The organization developed a short-term rental ordinance dashboard and has a full report on the topic. The organization studied 60 short-term rental ordinances in the U.S. and made recommendations on its analysis.

“Short-term rentals can open a swath of opportunity for homeowners looking to make additional dollars, while also providing economic development opportunities in neighborhoods that may not generally see high levels of tourism,” the National League of Cities report said.

The status of short-term rental ordinance varies in the state.

The city of Sturgis does not have a short-term rental ordinance. It does have an ordinance that covers camping on residential properties.

Pennington County has a committee discussing a possible short-term rental or vacation home rental ordinance. The short-term use would be allowed under a special permit or conditional use permit.

Requirements included in a proposed ordinance as of July 24 include one parking spot per bedroom as a minimum and a limit of 14 overnight guests or the maximum allowed based on the size of the existing onsite wastewater treatment system. The property owner would pay a $1,000 license fee.

The proposed ordinance for the joint jurisdiction would include a maximum of three people per bedroom, one parking space per guest bedroom and other requirements.

Cities and counties outside of South Dakota have also discussed and/or passed short-term rental ordinances.

The city of Greenville, South Carolina, for example has an ordinance that says “Short-term rentals of less than 30 days can only operate with a permit, a license, and in non-residential zoning districts in the City where “General Lodging” is allowed.” Greenville, like Sioux Falls, has seen a resurgence of its own falls park and downtown area over the past several years.

Sioux Falls officials have said they will look to Lincoln, Nebraska, when comparing certain city features and growth. Lincoln has an ordinance that governs short-term rentals.  The zoning and licensing regulations apply in the Lincoln city limits and three miles outside the city limits.

The ordinance requires a license and fees and other items. The maximum number of persons allowed in a rental is two multiplied by the sleeping areas with a maximum of 12 in any rental property. The ordinance was effective on Aug. 1, 2021.

The Urban Institute said in 2022 that cities and other municipalities can benefit from short-term rentals because it increase tourism and also provide an economic benefit to rental owners. On the other side, short-term rentals can drive up the overall rent in a location and also decrease the available full-time housing.

The GovOS website said in 2021 that short-term rentals were creating challenges for municipalities because of the potential loss of lodging taxes, complaints about noise and parking and other concerns. GovOS is a software company the works with municipalities including software with short-term rentals, public records, taxes and similar.