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DALLAS - Dozens of Dallas residents upset at the prospect or experience of living near short-term rentals filled Dallas City Council chambers Wednesday afternoon.
Dallas City Council members are expected to vote Wednesday on whether or not the rentals should be considered lodging. If so, the rentals would be limited to areas in the city where hotels are allowed.
60 people signed up to speak at Dallas City Hall with many of them wearing ‘Home Not Hotels’ shirts to show their support for city council members to vote to define short-term rentals as a lodging use.
City staff said earlier that such a move would eliminate 95% of the rentals in the city.
Some city council members have argued that the lodging definition could expose the city to court challenges.
But proponents of the zoning solution argue other similar city ordinances have withstood legal challenges already.
Legal experts have said that courts give a lot of latitude to cities when it comes to zoning decisions.
The dozens of speakers were limited to one minute each.
Friday, an assistant city manager issued a memo stating that the director of the planning and urban development department rejects that recommendation.
Some argue that the city staff's contradictory recommendation has not had time to be properly vetted.