The Cottonwood City Council adopted a resolution declaring a housing emergency in Cottonwood during its meeting on Tuesday, Feb. 4.
The resolution addressed what some council members saw as the effect of short-term rentals on local housing supply and the restrictions placed on the ability of cities and towns to limit STRs as a result of Senate Bill 1350, which became law in 2016.
The resolution stated that “The city of Cottonwood declares that a housing emergency exists within our city and region and recognizes the need to make housing a leading priority for the organization of the community.
“The city of Cottonwood recognizes that the housing emergency is exacerbated by the proliferation of short-term rentals and requests the state legislature return local control to cities and towns to implement reasonable zoning restrictions on STRs, including limitation on the number and location of short-term rentals.
“The city of Cottonwood calls on the legislature and governor of the state of Arizona to allow local governments to adopt reasonable regulations on the number and location of STRs as to strike a balance between property owners’ rights to fair use of their properties and the rights of surrounding property owners to set and maintain community standards.”
The resolution was requested by Mayor Ann Shaw, who was acting on the request of Sedona city council members. Ten other communities in the state have passed similar resolutions, including Camp Verde.
Shaw said that short-term rentals were not as much of an issue for Cottonwood as for Sedona but that it was important for Cottonwood to add their voice.
“We want to be able to take back some of the city’s autonomy in making certain zoning decisions to decide which properties can become short-term rentals and which neighborhoods we want to exclude them from and why, and also allow for our residents to have input rather than have it be a blanket decision that comes down from the state without consideration to the quality of life here in our community,” Shaw said.
Councilman Chris Dowell said that while STRs were not as much of an issue in Cottonwood, people being pushed out of Sedona are seeking housing in Cottonwood, thus indirectly affecting Cottonwood’s housing supply. Dowell is also the Sedona Police Department’s acting deputy chief.
Councilman Bob Marks was concerned with the resolution’s use of the word “emergency,” pointing out that if many communities declare an emergency, it would dilute the meaning of the word.
Councilwoman Felicia Coates said she had the same concern as Marks but was comfortable with the language when she read the summary of the resolution.
Shaw said that the resolution had not been copied directly from another city’s but edited to address Cottonwood’s situation. She added that her concern was not with the present but rather with the near future if nothing was done to curtail the proliferation of STRs.
Shaw acknowledged the word emergency was halting, but said, “I feel in the long run that there is a necessity for the sake of our city to support Sedona’s resolution. We will be impacted, there is no doubt about that. Even if we’re not feeling the impact now, it will come.”
The resolution was approved by a vote of 4 to 2, with Shaw, Dowell, Coates and Councilman Stephen DeWillis in favor and Marks and Councilwoman Joy Mosley opposed; Vice Mayor Debbie Wilden was absent.
