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B&B home regulations under review

BANFF – Controversial options for stricter regulations for Banff’s bed and breakfast industry are on the discussion table.
Historic Home Redevelopment
The historic McLeod/Crosby home located at 137 Lynx Street in Banff is pictured during its redevelopment in November, 2018. The home is being transformed into a bed and breakfast.

BANFF – Controversial options for stricter regulations for Banff’s bed and breakfast industry are on the discussion table.

Council will seek input on a review of the B&B quota, differential taxation, enforcement options for breaking the rules, allowing new B&Bs only in heritage properties and the cumbersome renewal process among many others.

“We’re obviously going down this very deep rabbit hole,” said Mayor Karen Sorensen after council unanimously voted on Monday (Jan. 14) to review B&B’s regulations. “I think this is an opportunity to have a very good public discussion.”

Aside from commercial growth management and the imbalance between commercial and residential development, how to better regulate the proliferation of B&Bs was one of the single biggest issues in the development debates of the 1990s.

At the time, the number of B&Bs was capped at 65 across the entire town, although only a certain number are allowed in 11 of the 24 residential districts where B&Bs are permitted.

The number of bed and breakfast home applications tapered off almost immediately after the quota was put in place in 1998, and interest waned until recently. There are currently 48 B&B homes and eight B&B inns.

Town administrators say high occupancy rates in hotels have played a part in more tourists seeking accommodation in the more personal B&B homes.

Dave Michaels, development planner for the Town of Banff, said administration has seen a number of rooms in B&Bs advertised for more than $300 a night, as well as approved all guest rooms offered for a rate of up to $1,990 per night with a five-night minimum stay.

“These rates may offer operators a greater incentive to offer short-term commercial accommodation rather than long-term rental,” said Dave Michaels, the Town’s development planner. “In addition, an operator may have a similar revenue per bedroom as a hotel-motel without the additional costs of commercial tax.”

April Wood, who owns At Wits End B&B on Mountain Avenue with her husband Peter, said she believes the affect B&Bs have on Banff’s housing supply is almost negligible.

“There’s been minimal growth in B&Bs since incorporation, while during this time there’s been significant growth in areas such as retail, restaurants and hotels, which have all created significant job opportunities and demands on housing,” she said.

“I think it’s a stretch to assume that if the bedrooms in these single family homes were not utilized for B&B operations that they would be used for monthly tenants.”

B&B owner Ross Glenfield said he would like to see the issue of variances further considered for B&Bs, which currently can only be granted to B&Bs in highly valued heritage homes.

Instead of limiting the number of B&Bs in districts that are not filled within the quota, he said broader variances could be considered, such as parking, mixed use and live-in ownership, to encourage residents to set up B&Bs in these areas.

“I would suggest the limits on variances might play a part in the under representation of B&Bs in some districts,” he said, noting that’s particularly the case in districts close to downtown.

“B&Bs tend to be well kept by B&B owners and a broader view of variances would revitalize properties in these under-utilized districts.”

Last year, Banff’s municipal planning commission for the first time shut down three homes operating outside their permits by running more rooms than allowed and violating the live-in owner rule.

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