CA is a great idea and might be a way to include the perspectives of part time residents who are not registered to vote in local elections.
Part time residents spend a lot of time in our community and pay taxes—it would be interesting to learn the proportion of local taxes that are paid by people who vote elsewhere. Our elected officials only answer to a small slice of the residents. If more voices were heard, I suspect we’d have different elected officials pursuing different policies.
I hate to sound like the revolutionaries who fought for freedom from Britain, but the relationship of taxation and residency to voting power here distorts public decision-making.
Interesting point. In Colo., second home "residents" are allowed to vote in local elections. Hence, they have a say in city Counsels and county governments. By far, the proportion of property taxes paid by second home owners is substantial, yet they don't use servives like local education, and have no say in elections.
The best form of governement, throughout history, was a benelovent dictatorship. That said, the form of governement is less significant than the quality and objectives of each elected official. These are the qualities that may be challenged by the local incumbents...
One way to guesstimate the percentage of home owners who do not declare Ketchum as their primary residence and vote elsewhere is by the homeowners exemption on our property tax. Last I heard the properties in Ketchum owned by those who do not take the homeowners exemption is about 90%
Essentially, non voting property owners in Ketchum represent a far greater number of potential votes than do those that are "residents." Hence, a very small number of voters determine the future for Ketchum when, in fact, second home owners provide the vast majority of funds for their City Council to develop the town. That is why this is all happening! Let's be clear eyed about all of this....
Yes, that's where I've heard we're at. In early 2017, when I was on the city council we were at approximately 75%. The big resorts in Colorado, Aspen, Vail, Telluride etc., were all at 80% or more. It was shocking! There are quite a few people who we all assume are full time residents here with homes elsewhere that declare their primary residency at their homes in different states for tax purposes.
I think we have some ID tax dodgers using WA as their “home”. But also, I don’t know if all residents know about the exemption. But I would not be surprised if it’s north of 80%. We had 500 units go Airbnb in the past 7 years.
Question: If "tenants" can register to vote, why not non-residents....? Does any local agency inquire as to whether some vote in more than one jurisdiction, or state? E.G., Ada County and Blaine?
90% might be high. However, the 75% was calculated BEFORE the Idaho legislators allowed all residences to become short term lodging with no local restrictions, Covid and the huge boom in development we are experiencing. 🤔
I support citizen's assemblies. I have been reading about them for over a year now. We need to educate Blaine County citizens on how this might benefit our community. We need to invite this fellow Josh Burgess to our community to give our residents and elected officials a presentation.
Our once small mountain town is facing some daunting issues. We need to give our residents a chance and respect "to citizen."
Bronggng Josh Burgess here is a good idea. I’m going to take to Jenny Emery Davidson at the Library about that. She has been doing a series on democracy.
After reading Elizabeth's most piece on civic assemblies, what comes to mind is that Ketchum housing crisis is particularly acute and assemblies address more chronic problems because they take place on a regular basis over longer periods of time. What I mean to say is, the issues at-hand in Ketchum are so acute that a request for a stay and a lawsuit needs to be filed with the aim of temporarily halting the next Bluebird. In addition to involving City Council/KURA, it needs to include the state.of Idaho. It's the best way to get the attention your need.
Airbnb is insufficiently regulated in Ketchum. The ratio of short-term rentals to total dwellings is too high. The mere vagaries and rapaciousness of market demand will dictate how this imbalance evolves unless local governments have more control. The ratio of STR's to LTR's needs to be monitored and dynamically kept at a sustainable level over time. Without regulation, the small resort towns are being over-run and effectively destroyed. As specialized tourist/recreational economies market forces over which they have insufficient control have more impact. They need more ability to adapt.
Focus more close-up on trying to control the short-term rental market. Assemblies are an eminently worthy project, but they're more of a 'Socratic dialog' and you guys need an 'effing 'War Room'. The larger framework of state law restricts resort towns from having some measure of reasonable control of their short-term rental markets and more broadly their socioeconomic trajectories, especially over the long-haul. Local governments must be able to responsibly curating a resort town's resiliency! It's also a fundamental right of the town's citizens and it's grounded at the Constitutional level, pretty much, eh?
Citizen's assemblies are one thing in Oregon and another thing in Idaho. They take time to set up. Ketchum does not have the time. The next mayor will be just as hamstrung by a "fear of control" vs. a "manage change creatively" mindset. It's a right-wing, conservative state! Don't get sidetracked. Work with first principles here. The problem is about the arbitrary legal restrictions imposed on Idaho resort towns at state level and they are damaging these specialized local mountain economies.
I'm not saying citizen assemblies won't work in Idaho, I'm saying that they're more of a longer- term project. If you don't commit and do something drastic NOW, your leverage to make change will likely decrease with time, as laws and ways of thinking get ever more entrenched. The Troika is making the decisions it is, simply because they can, the law allows it and to a very large extent, tax policy encourages it.
Just sayin'...it may be a pinhead's point of view but it's mine, goddamn it. Cheers.
As per code: "Neither a county nor a city can regulate the operation of a short-term rental marketplace."
AI recap: "In 2017, Idaho passed a law (Idaho Code § 67-6539) that prevents cities and counties from banning or severely restricting STRs. This law classifies STRs as residential land use and limits how much local governments can regulate them."
PS. At this point, the more disruptive you can be at this late date, the better, because things are pretty bad at the moment. With apologies for the errors in what was written above.
CA is a great idea and might be a way to include the perspectives of part time residents who are not registered to vote in local elections.
Part time residents spend a lot of time in our community and pay taxes—it would be interesting to learn the proportion of local taxes that are paid by people who vote elsewhere. Our elected officials only answer to a small slice of the residents. If more voices were heard, I suspect we’d have different elected officials pursuing different policies.
I hate to sound like the revolutionaries who fought for freedom from Britain, but the relationship of taxation and residency to voting power here distorts public decision-making.
Interesting point. In Colo., second home "residents" are allowed to vote in local elections. Hence, they have a say in city Counsels and county governments. By far, the proportion of property taxes paid by second home owners is substantial, yet they don't use servives like local education, and have no say in elections.
The best form of governement, throughout history, was a benelovent dictatorship. That said, the form of governement is less significant than the quality and objectives of each elected official. These are the qualities that may be challenged by the local incumbents...
Thanks. What'd definition of "second home 'residents'" in CO? Can it be also a leaseholder...?
I believe that it centers on owning property in the county. I don'y have any details beyound that.
"Give me liberty or give me death." You're not there , yet, Ed.
That would be a good statistic to know.
One way to guesstimate the percentage of home owners who do not declare Ketchum as their primary residence and vote elsewhere is by the homeowners exemption on our property tax. Last I heard the properties in Ketchum owned by those who do not take the homeowners exemption is about 90%
Essentially, non voting property owners in Ketchum represent a far greater number of potential votes than do those that are "residents." Hence, a very small number of voters determine the future for Ketchum when, in fact, second home owners provide the vast majority of funds for their City Council to develop the town. That is why this is all happening! Let's be clear eyed about all of this....
YES...and K gives each of them them TWO votes!!
That’s incredible—what I’m understanding you to say is that 90 percent of homes are not primary residences?
Yes, that's where I've heard we're at. In early 2017, when I was on the city council we were at approximately 75%. The big resorts in Colorado, Aspen, Vail, Telluride etc., were all at 80% or more. It was shocking! There are quite a few people who we all assume are full time residents here with homes elsewhere that declare their primary residency at their homes in different states for tax purposes.
I think we have some ID tax dodgers using WA as their “home”. But also, I don’t know if all residents know about the exemption. But I would not be surprised if it’s north of 80%. We had 500 units go Airbnb in the past 7 years.
Question: If "tenants" can register to vote, why not non-residents....? Does any local agency inquire as to whether some vote in more than one jurisdiction, or state? E.G., Ada County and Blaine?
…Nevada, Wyoming…
90% might be high. However, the 75% was calculated BEFORE the Idaho legislators allowed all residences to become short term lodging with no local restrictions, Covid and the huge boom in development we are experiencing. 🤔
Thanks Anne. It is shocking, and explains a lot.
I support citizen's assemblies. I have been reading about them for over a year now. We need to educate Blaine County citizens on how this might benefit our community. We need to invite this fellow Josh Burgess to our community to give our residents and elected officials a presentation.
Our once small mountain town is facing some daunting issues. We need to give our residents a chance and respect "to citizen."
Bronggng Josh Burgess here is a good idea. I’m going to take to Jenny Emery Davidson at the Library about that. She has been doing a series on democracy.
This is great information Liz. What a fascination concept! We need long term solutions like this for good governance.
After reading Elizabeth's most piece on civic assemblies, what comes to mind is that Ketchum housing crisis is particularly acute and assemblies address more chronic problems because they take place on a regular basis over longer periods of time. What I mean to say is, the issues at-hand in Ketchum are so acute that a request for a stay and a lawsuit needs to be filed with the aim of temporarily halting the next Bluebird. In addition to involving City Council/KURA, it needs to include the state.of Idaho. It's the best way to get the attention your need.
Airbnb is insufficiently regulated in Ketchum. The ratio of short-term rentals to total dwellings is too high. The mere vagaries and rapaciousness of market demand will dictate how this imbalance evolves unless local governments have more control. The ratio of STR's to LTR's needs to be monitored and dynamically kept at a sustainable level over time. Without regulation, the small resort towns are being over-run and effectively destroyed. As specialized tourist/recreational economies market forces over which they have insufficient control have more impact. They need more ability to adapt.
Focus more close-up on trying to control the short-term rental market. Assemblies are an eminently worthy project, but they're more of a 'Socratic dialog' and you guys need an 'effing 'War Room'. The larger framework of state law restricts resort towns from having some measure of reasonable control of their short-term rental markets and more broadly their socioeconomic trajectories, especially over the long-haul. Local governments must be able to responsibly curating a resort town's resiliency! It's also a fundamental right of the town's citizens and it's grounded at the Constitutional level, pretty much, eh?
Citizen's assemblies are one thing in Oregon and another thing in Idaho. They take time to set up. Ketchum does not have the time. The next mayor will be just as hamstrung by a "fear of control" vs. a "manage change creatively" mindset. It's a right-wing, conservative state! Don't get sidetracked. Work with first principles here. The problem is about the arbitrary legal restrictions imposed on Idaho resort towns at state level and they are damaging these specialized local mountain economies.
I'm not saying citizen assemblies won't work in Idaho, I'm saying that they're more of a longer- term project. If you don't commit and do something drastic NOW, your leverage to make change will likely decrease with time, as laws and ways of thinking get ever more entrenched. The Troika is making the decisions it is, simply because they can, the law allows it and to a very large extent, tax policy encourages it.
Just sayin'...it may be a pinhead's point of view but it's mine, goddamn it. Cheers.
https://legislature.idaho.gov/statutesrules/idstat/title67/t67ch65/sect67-6539/
As per code: "Neither a county nor a city can regulate the operation of a short-term rental marketplace."
AI recap: "In 2017, Idaho passed a law (Idaho Code § 67-6539) that prevents cities and counties from banning or severely restricting STRs. This law classifies STRs as residential land use and limits how much local governments can regulate them."
PS. At this point, the more disruptive you can be at this late date, the better, because things are pretty bad at the moment. With apologies for the errors in what was written above.