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HomeMy WebLinkAboutRe Barnstable Historical Commission - Public HearingGrayce, I apologize for you having to hear petty HOA complaints. Pete is NOT an abutter (although he so "kindly" gave his 'blessing' to our addition) so it is of no value to you or to the meeting this week. Not that it matters, but I did present to our HOA last year so everyone would understand our small rental times and have time to ask me any questions. Pete had time to discuss these non-related concerns with me, but he did not. Rather he stopped me from speaking and verbally assaulted me. My HOA board just sat there and did not speak up - so I am no longer taking part in the HOA (as many others in my neighborhood have already chosen to do). Again, I apologize, but I'm sure you've seen it all! Again, not that it matters in regard to this meeting or the committee, but I did buy this house to retire in and that is exactly why I am asking for the addition. I am currently 52, so I am not quite there yet. The weeks that I do not use with my family I rent out. Last year I had think I had three weeks that we did not use the house and I rented those. So when Pete saw 'fully booked' it meant that the very few weeks I was not using were booked - not that every week was booked of course. This is exactly what the prior owner had done since the 1990's. I do not rent my house all year and for the very few times I do rent it out in the summer I have a MA tax ID number, a short term rental permit from Barnstable, a yearly inspection from Barnstable, all my renters book through Airbnb and are vetted and pay the near 22% Cape Cod tax to support our community, my HOA covenants do NOT restrict short term rentals and I personally vet each renter. Also, I've never had a single complaint about the few times I have rented, which makes the fact that Pete is upset about this even more puzzling. If we are approved for the addition I will not be renting any longer. But that is my choice and if I wanted to I certainly could and I would do so by the STR laws of Barnstable and our HOA covenants. Sorry again for his note. And thanks again for all your help in this process, Kristen Kristen Bishop On Sun, May 15, 2022 at 3:02 PM Peter and Fiona Atkinson <pandfincabo@gmail.com> wrote: Ms Grayce Rogers Planning & Development Department, Barnstable Historical Commission . Reference: 139 Regency Drive, Marstons Mills, Map 063, Parcel 073 Director, Commissioner & Ms. Rogers, We are writing to you regarding the abutter notice we received just yesterday, informing us that the Barnstable Historical Commission will be holding a public hearing this Tuesday, on the proposed partial demolition and expansion application for the above referenced property. My wife and I live in the same Lynxholm subdivision and are aware of the apparent passion the applicant has for the property, the area's history and their plan for significant additional investments.We have no basic objection to the demolition or the size and design of the proposed addition. We do however, have several concerns over the future use of the property and the way the non-resident applicant has remotely managed this property as a general rental property in a single-family residential (RF) zoned district for the past two years. The applicant claims their "Camp Adelaide Guest House '' was purchased as a retirement home, but to our knowledge, the applicant has never indicated when they plan to retire and continues to promote the property for rent on Facebook and Airbnb. The applicant initially claimed at a HOA annual meeting, it would be just a one-time summer season short-term rental and while we are fairly certain the property will have been duly registered as a short-term rental with the local municipality, the applicant advertises year-round rentals and 28+ day rentals on Facebook and Airbnb. A February 2021 quote on the property's Facebook page states - "Welcome to the Camp Adelaide Facebook page. We rent our house all year round and are open to short visits in the off season. Currently we are fully booked all of June, July and August 2021. We do have openings in April and May of this year - spring is a great time to explore the Cape!" We believe the continuing business practice of year-round long and short-term rentals may contravene both the residential zoning ordinance and the HOA covenants that prohibit certain businesses. In addition, and again while we are confident the applicant obtained the necessary health and occupancy certificates, the current Airbnb listing offers accommodations for up to six guests in three bedrooms including a two bedroom basement bunk room. The property's Facebook page was promoting upto eight guests with the addition of a queen sleep sofa in the great room. However, the Town's property record lists only two bedrooms in just 796 sq. ft of living space with an unfinished basement and the applicant's NOI narrative mentions only one bedroom in the living space. We are concerned that the approval of what appears (the applicant's sketches lack the necessary detail) to be a three-story addition (2 x 400 sq.ft. floors plus a 200 sq.ft. walkout basement) with an extra bedroom/bathroom, a second kitchen and an expansion of the existing basement bunk room, will simply facilitate both the continuance and expansion of the applicant's current rental business and could overload the septic system and limited onsite parking. Should the demolition and addition be approved we would sincerely appreciate it if you could find a way to condition your approval on the applicant becoming a resident of our community and not continuing to manage the property as an ongoing business. Respectfully yours, Peter & Fiona Atkinson 25 Heath Row, Marstons Mills, MA 02648 Copies to: Kristin Bishop, Applicant. Teresa Hanafin - RDOA. CAUTION:This email originated from outside of the Town of Barnstable! 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