SAN DIEGO (NEWS 8) - Ocean Beach residents are pushing back against short-term vacation rentals. Residents Wednesday said they are sick of the noise and trash and are fighting to maintain the vibe of their neighborhood.
Residents voiced their opinions Wednesday night at a monthly town hall meeting. They're pushing for legislation in hopes of effectively limiting the number of vacation rental units allowed in their neighborhood.
One resident explained the loss of community when you don’t know who is living next door and the frustration with different people coming and going and many feel the rentals pose a threat to their quality of life and the neighborhood's character.
The Ocean Beach community has the highest percentage of renters to homeowners in the region with 85 percent of residents renting. Neighbors feel they're being driven out of their own neighborhood by developers who buy out property or homeowners who decide they can make more renting out by the night.
“Rents going up, it's insane and the culture changes completely when you take away the apartments and you have these people who come in just for the weekend. They're really loud,” said OB Resident Liz Felando.
Some of the residents also stressed that they weren't upset with the residents looking to make a little extra cash and rent out a spare room, but their concern was focused on homeowners who are buying houses with no intention to live there.
San Diego City Attorney Mara Elliott urged residents to pressure city council to pass regulations limiting the number of vacation rentals allowed. However, the same town council that met Wednesday night also placed this issue in front of Mayor Kevin Faulconer last year, but said no changes were made. Their hope moving forward is that with additional people speaking out change will take place.