Short-term rentals banned from affluent California neighborhood after residents complain about shootings, drugs and partying

Residents of a Long Beach neighborhood have successfully banned short-term rentals after a series of drug-related busts and loud partying pushed them over the edge.

After a months-long fight, College Estates resident Andy Oliver led a successful petition to ban unsupervised, short-term rentals — such as Airbnb and Vrbo — after problems disturbed him and his neighbors. The College Estates neighborhood, located near the San Gabriel River, is an affluent neighborhood with numerous homes worth over $1m, according to Realtor.com.

Mr Oliver told the Los Angeles Times he had been frustrated with a nearby Airbnb for more than a year after a frightening encounter.

“The kid is chased cross my lawn and shot right at my front porch,” Oliver told CBS News of the incident.

But Mr Oliver wasn’t just concerned about the gunshot victim. Parties and drug use had made the rentals a nuisance for months, he said.

The Long Beach resident told the Los Angeles Times he spoke with renters in December after they disturbed him by smoking marijuana.

“They said recreational marijuana wasn’t allowed in Texas and they were going to take advantage of their time here,” Mr Oliver told the outlet.

He also pointed to loud late-night parties as a source of frustration for him and his neighbors.

“The music is blaring. There’s screaming and drunkenness spilling out into the front and back lawns till 3 am,” Mr Oliver told the Los Angeles Times. “One of the guests actually apologized the next day, but then they partied again till 4 am”

Trouble with Airbnbs isn’t anything new for the city. In 2020, the city passed an ordinance limiting the number of unsupervised rentals to 1,000. That same ordinance permits residents to ban rentals by circulating a petition in their neighborhood — enabling Mr Oliver to lead his movement.

Mr Oliver needed more than half the homes in College Estates to sign the petition for the ban to go into effect. He told media outlets he got more than half the 800 homes to agree after months of canvassing.

“I heard it was close and I don’t have confirmation of the final vote, but I was informed [last week] that we succeeded,” Mr Oliver told the Los Angeles Times over the weekend.

Now, College Estates has become the first neighborhood to enact the ban. However, residents in other nearby neighborhoods are looking to follow in Mr Oliver’s footsteps.

Christina Nigrelli told Fox News she’s waiting for the city of Long Beach to review her petition to ban the short-term, unsupervised rentals in the South of Conant neighborhood.

Other residents aren’t as enthusiastic, telling reporters they rely on renting Airbnbs to supplement their income.

Jean Young, 67, told the Los Angeles Times she runs an Airbnb in Long Beach.

“I’m a part-time writer, and the income from rentals just smooths out the rough edges and has been wonderful,” she told the outlet. Ms Young also told CBS News she relies on the income “to help me survive here in California.”

The Independent has contacted Airbnb for comment.