Ever wonder what it’s like to live next door to a place that is rented by the hour? Marco Island resident Ken Honecker wishes you could imagine his loss to quality of life due to his neighboring rental.

“It’s essentially open season ... Just come over for a birthday party and leave. I don’t think that should happen in a single family neighborhood,” Honecker exclaimed.

Residents living next door to short-term rental properties, sometimes defined as anywhere from one hour rentals to six month rentals, should find some relief in an ordinance being reviewed by the Planning Board and Short-Term Rental Housing Advisory Committee Wednesday night.

Honecker and other neighbors of rentals said they wished the City of Marco Island chose an ordinance similar to the City of Naples and Sanibel Island which limits rentals to 30 days or longer.

The city defined a short-term rental as one that rents for less than six months and the draft ordinance will limit rentals to only one lease within seven days, but does not limit the minimum length of stay.

The proposed ordinance put together by the rental housing advisory committee will hold tenants responsible as well as landlords who have frequent problems including noise violations at the same property.

For years Honecker says he has experienced problems with a neighboring rental at 640 Dorando Court – owned by Cory Maile of Realty Net Real Estate – including as many as six cars parked on the lawn, trash left out in front of the house, as many as 35 people staying in the house, trespassing, loud music and boats parked improperly.

The case will be going before the code enforcement board next month.

Chief code enforcement officer Eric Wardle said a challenge in the past has been that the police respond to many of the noise complaints in the evening and on weekends.

The Marco Island Police Department just recently began sending code enforcement the results of those calls so that there is record of how frequent the problem is at specific properties, Wardle said.

A joint workshop to discuss the proposed recommendations for the registration and operational requirements of short term rental homes will be held by the Planning Board and Rental Housing Committee 7 p.m., Wednesday, at Mackle Park.

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