By James Windell
The City Hall Council Chambers was just not spacious enough to accommodate all of the Short-Term Rental owners who showed up for an STR Informational meeting.
Billed on the City of South Haven’s website as an opportunity to ask questions about the revised STR ordinance that was approved earlier this year, the meeting at 2:00 pm on Tuesday, September 30, 2025, drew so many people that even with extra chairs set up there was still standing room only in the room and a smattering of people in the hallway.
City Manager Kate Hosier said that the meeting would start with a presentation followed by a Q & A session – with questions from the audience written on cards which were handed out to everyone as they entered the chambers.
Kelly Getman-Dissette, Planning and Zoning Administrator for the City, got the meeting going with a 10-minute slide presentation that was an overview of the new STR ordinance. She said that both her presentation and the Q&A session would be a chance for a panel to talk about how “we are going to administer the program.”
In her talk, Getman-Dissette pointed out that the major changes in the STR ordinance revolved around the application process, the fee schedule and the length of STR licenses.
Following her informal lecture, she, along with Megan Blodgett, the STR Program Coordinator, Luke Thompson, the STR Inspector, City Manager Hosier and City Attorney, Dave Eberle, were ready to answer questions. For the next hour, the panel read aloud questions submitted by the audience and attempted to provide clarification about various aspects of the STR ordinance and the process of licensing STRs.
In response to questions, the panel said that all STRs in the City must now apply for an STR license and be granted a special land use permit in order to operate as an STR. Concern about the steep increase in fees for an STR license was a topic that raised many questions. Audience members asked pointed questions about why the fees were increased and the reasoning for the new fee schedule. At least three members of the panel explained that the fees were not arbitrary, and they were not increased to make a profit for the city. It was explained that the fee schedule was based on city staff’s “best estimate of the cost of administering the STR program.”
As City Attorney Eberle took pains to explain, on more than one occasion, the panel was not responsible for the STR ordinance or the fee schedule. The City Council approved the ordinance and the new fees. “Thery passed the ordinance,” Eberle said, “and you would have to ask each of them what they had in mind in approving the changes.”
However, as the questions related to the fees continued, the panelists emphasized that the fees were based on the best guesses of what it would take to run the STR program. “The STR program is to be self-sustaining,” Eberle said. “The fees are estimated to cover the cost of reviewing each application, doing an inspection, and handling the legal work in going over each application.” He added several times: “I know this answer might not be satisfactory to you.”
The panelists also let the STR owners know they could not answer specific questions during this meeting, but they would be available to take phone calls to try to answer specific questions.
It became evident to the audience as the meeting continued that the review and approval of applicants for STR licenses was moving at a snail’s pace. The panel said that they have received about 100 applications so far, but only 12 STRs had completed the process and been licensed. It was indicated by Getman-Dissette that no STR could operate without a new license and it was likely that some current licenses would expire before a new application would be approved.
Justin Hess, an STR owner, who sat through the entire meeting, seemed to reflect the attitudes of many STR owners who were in the audience.
“I would say that the meeting was informative,” he said. “But I don’t understand why they are doing this.”
Hess expressed concern about the process of approving applications. “It seems like it’s a very slow process,” he said.
He could only shake his head in wonderment when he thought about the tedious process and the fact that there could be as many as 700 licenses that needed to be processed.
