Legal Cases & Correspondence

The following legal cases have decided that STR’s are a commercial use that is not compatible in residential areas.

Ontario Municipal Board case (Sheldon Rosen and The Lodges at Blue Mountain Corporation v. Town of Blue Mountains (2011) PL080455 includes the following:

In this context, the Board has considered LBM’s argument that Short Term Accommodations (STA's) units are dwellings and that they are compatible with any residential area. The Board, however, disagrees. The Board finds that STA units are distinct commercial entities with the goal of making a profit. They are often managed by a professional manager who uses a system of reservation, collects taxes and accepts credit cards from paying guests whose permanent residences are elsewhere and who have no right of renewal. Those premises are occupied by paying guests for a short span of time for the purpose of enjoying the recreational and tourist facilities in the area. This commercial entity has the potential to conflict with the character and stability of existing neighbourhoods because of the constant turnover of people and the difficulty that turnover brings in controlling noise and other nuisances.

Menzies case (Ottawa-Carleton Standard Condominium Corporation No. 961 v Menzies, 2016 ONSC 7699 CanLll includes the following and determines that STR’s were a hotel-like use:

“Single-family use” cannot be interpreted to include one’s operation of a hotel-like business, with units being offered to complete strangers on the internet, on a repeated basis, for durations as short as a single night.

Single-family use is not incompatible with: