Fort Walton Beach Ordinance — 2201-Establishing Temporary Moratorium Enforcement of Requirements on Short-Term Rentals — reading text

2ADING DATE ORDINANCE 2 2 0 1 Moat/ AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY OF FORT WALTON BEACH, FLORIDA, ESTABLISHING A TEMPORARY MORATORIUM ON THE ENFORCEMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR SHORT-TERM RENTALS SET FORTH IN SECTION 8. 13 OF THE CITY CODE OF ORDINANCES ( CREATED BY ORDINANCE NO. 2181); PROVIDING FOR FINDINGS OF FACT; PROVIDING FOR A SIX MONTH TEMPORARY MORATORIUM; RECOGNIZING PENDING LITIGATION OVER THE CONSTITUTIONALITY OF SB 180; RECOGNIZING THAT THE FLORIDA LEGISLATURE MAY CONSIDER A BILL MODIFYING SB 180 IN 2026; PROVIDING FOR SEVERABILITY; PROVIDING FOR EXPIRATION OF MORATORIUM ON JULY 27, 2026; AND PROVIDING FOR AN EFFECTIVE DATE. WHEREAS, Senate Bill 180 ( SB 180), which was signed into effect on July 1, 2025, has potentially impacted the City' s ability to establish land development regulations that may be deemed as more restrictive or burdensome; and WHEREAS, the City of Fort Walton Beach passed Ordinance 2181 on April 22, 2025, in an attempt to regulate short term rentals and mitigate the impact of short-term rentals on residents of the City; and WHEREAS, SB 180 applies retroactively from August 1, 2024 through October 1, 2027 and therefore has the potential to impact a City ordinance passed on April 22, 2025; and WHEREAS, a legal battle has ensured among local governments, with many cities and counties challenging the law' s constitutionality and seeking to restore their home-rule authority; and WHEREAS, the State Legislature may consider repealing damaging provisions of SB 180 that undermine local planning and threaten the health, safety, and quality of life of residents; and WHEREAS, the City Council of the City of Fort Walton Beach desires to temporarily place a moratorium on the enforcement of Section 8. 13, City Code of Ordinances ( created by Ordinance 2181, which imposes requirements on short-term rentals, given the pending litigation and noted potential for the State Legislature to repeal portions of the SB 180 in 2026; and WHEREAS, it is important to the City Council of the City of Fort Walton Beach to balance the rights of private property owners with the public health, safety and welfare of residents and the general public; and WHEREAS, permanent single-family and multi- family residents inherently understand and know their physical surroundings, to include any safety gaps and potential risks to their families because they have daily familiarity; and WHEREAS, short-term rental occupants, due to the transient nature of their occupancy, are unfamiliar with local hurricane evacuation plans, the location of fire extinguishers, residence exit routes, pool and home safety features, and other similar safety measures that would readily be provided to guests in traditional lodging establishments; and  WHEREAS, local apply design standards tailored for residential governments neighborhoods for their roads, driveways, parking areas, emergency services planning, public shelters, emergency evacuation plans, solid waste collection, utilities, buffers and are also tailored in assessing their infrastructure impacts; and WHEREAS, short- term vacation rentals located within established neighborhoods can disturb the quiet enjoyment of the neighborhood, lower property values, and burden the design layout of the neighborhood; and WHEREAS, the presence of short-term vacation rentals in established residential neighborhoods can create negative compatibility impacts, among which include, but are not limited to, excessive noise, on- street parking accumulation of trash, and diminished public safety; and WHEREAS, short-term vacation rental owners may live elsewhere and not experience the quality of life problems and negative impacts associated with larger, unregulated short-term vacation rentals in residential neighborhoods; and WHEREAS, traditional lodging establishments ( hotels, motels and bed and breakfasts) are restricted to non-residentially zoned areas where more intense uses are separated from less busy and quieter residential uses; and WHEREAS, the City Council of the City of Fort Walton Beach supports legislation that allows local governments to further regulate such properties to protect the integrity of their residential neighborhoods and to protect the health and welfare of their residents, visitors and businesses; and WHEREAS, permanent residents within established residential neighborhoods deserve the right to tranquility and peaceful enjoyment of their home without over-intrusion by an excessive number of transient occupants in the neighborhood; and WHEREAS, permanent residents within residential neighborhoods often establish long- term friendships, social norms and a sense of community which often leads to mutual respect among property owners on an ongoing basis; and WHEREAS, a home is typically the largest investment a family will make in their lifetime, with the home held sacred in popular culture as the heart and the center of the family unit; and WHEREAS, the City of Fort Walton Beach promotes tourism, including appreciation and enjoyment of the City' s abundant preserved natural areas, pristine parks, and walking and bicycling paths that make the City of Fort Walton Beach unique among Florida' s municipalities; and WHEREAS, many local jurisdictions in the State of Florida, and across the nation, have standards in place to minimize the negative impacts caused by short-term vacation rentals; and WHEREAS, the City desires to encourage short-term vacation rentals that are safe, fit in with the character of the neighborhood, provide positive impacts for tourism, increase property values, and achieve greater neighborhood compatibility; and WHEREAS, the City seeks to balance respect for private property rights and incompatibility concerns between the investors/ short- term vacation rentals and families/permanent single and multi- family residences in established residential neighborhoods through the use of reasonable development standards; and WHEREAS, it is intended that during the six ( 6) month moratorium on short-term rental registrations, the City will review the current regulations in the context of SB 180, pending litigation related to SB 180, and the potential for a " glitch bill" modifying the current terms of SB 180; and NOW THEREFORE BE IT ORDAINED BY THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF FORT WALTON BEACH AS FOLLOWS: SECTION 1. FINDINGS. The above stated findings are hereby adopted. SECTION 2. PURPOSE. Pursuant to the above- referenced findings, the City of Fort Walton Beach has made reasonable efforts to minimize the impacts of short-term rentals on the local community via the requirements section 8. 13, City Code of Ordinances established by Ordinance 2181, which was enacted on April 22, 2025). SECTION 3. TEMPORARY MORATORIUM. There is hereby enacted, within the municipal limits of the City of Fort Walton Beach, a Temporary Moratorium on the requirements and regulations for short-term rentals set forth in section 8. 13, City Code of Ordinances ( as created by Ordinance No. 2181, enacted on April 22, 2025). Enforcement of these requirements shall be held in abeyance until July 27, 2026, unless this Temporary Moratorium Ordinance is otherwise extended by majority vote of the City Council of the City of Fort Walton Beach. The City of Fort Walton Beach shall not require adherence to, nor enforce, section 8. 13, City Code of Ordinances ( as created by Ordinance No. 2181, enacted April 22, 2025) prior to July 27, 2026. SECTION 4. EXPIRATION OF MORATORIUM. extended by Unless amendment of this Ordinance, this Temporary Moratorium shall expire on July 27, 2026. SECTION 5. SEVERABILITY. If any section, phrase, sentence, or portion of this Ordinance is, for any reason, held invalid or unconstitutional by any court of competent jurisdiction, such portion shall be deemed a separate, distinct, and independent provision, and such holding shall not affect the validity of the remaining portions thereof. SECTION 6. EFFECTIVE DATE. This ordinance shall become effective upon its adoption by the City Council and signature by the mayor. Adopted: 70,nkar ' Z a- 0.1,( o is A - gretto, + Attest: Approved Ito le... 1 form and sufficiency for the ' y of F, Walton Beach, only. t/ aI l Kim ,. Barnes, City Cle Jeffrey City Attorney t. 5. / 4444 '