Mesa City Council recently approved an ordinance regulating short-term or vacation rentals of less than 30 days.

The new ordinance changes the Mesa City Code and follows the approval of a new state law that gives cities more flexibility to regulate short-term rental properties, according to a release.

“We received a lot of feedback, especially from the business community, about the new Mesa ordinance, which gives specific requirements for property owners and spells out the penalties for those who allow parties, parking issues and other code violations that get out of hand,” Mayor John Giles said in the release.

The new ordinance will require owners of short-term rental properties to acquire a special city of Mesa license. Other provisions of the ordinance include:

• Compliance with city codes and applicable laws, including zoning, tax, noise and health and safety
• Emergency contact information of a local person(s) responsible for responding to complaints and emergencies
• Requires notifying neighboring properties that a property will be used as a short-term rental
• Establishes minimum liability insurance requirements
• Prohibits uses per statute including, housing sex offenders, sober living homes, selling liquor or illegal drugs, obscenity, pornography, adult-oriented business, special events and retail
• Defines grounds and processes for denial and suspension of license
  Establishes civil penalties against owners and others

Proposed fees for the annual license and violations will be considered by Mesa City Council at a later date, after the 60-day public notice required by state statute. The ordinance is scheduled to take effect Feb. 1, 2023.