By Joe Capozzi
The town’s 27 condominiums will get reminders from town officials that Airbnbs, Vrbos and other short-term rentals are not allowed in South Palm Beach.
Unlike many other Florida municipalities, including nearby Lake Worth Beach, South Palm Beach has never had a problem with a proliferation of short-term rentals because town code allows only rentals of at least 30 days.
The town code is enforceable because it was in effect before state legislators approved a 2011 law that gives broad powers to short-term rentals and prevents most municipalities from regulating them.
Occasionally, a South Palm Beach condo will appear on a short-term rental platform, which happened recently with a unit in the Brittany, just north of Town Hall, at 3575 S. Ocean Blvd.
“My building has some problems with that. We are nipping it in the bud,’’ council member Monte Berendes, who lives in the Brittany, said at the Feb. 14 Town Council meeting.
A condo owner in the building had rented his unit to someone, who then advertised the unit on a short-term rental site, said Berendes, who said the condo owner was out of the country and not aware of what the renter had done.
After residents in the Brittany noticed people they didn’t recognize going into the unit in January, the problem was quickly resolved.
But Berendes brought it to the attention of town officials, who agreed with the town attorney’s recommendation to remind condo owners about what they can and can’t do with their units.
Condo owners who want to rent their units under town code must have state and county licenses, Town Attorney Glen Torcivia said.
“The tax collector has an aggressive program where she will go online and if she sees you are advertising your house to rent, you’re going to get a bill from her,’’ Torcivia said.
In other business:
• The Town Council agreed to send a letter to Gov. Ron DeSantis in support of the town of Palm Beach’s request for the state to eliminate plans for a bicycle lane along a 1.7-mile stretch of South Ocean Boulevard north of South Palm Beach.
The state wants to add a bike lane on the west side of the road between Ibis Way and the Lake Worth Bridge as part of a road resurfacing project. But Palm Beach officials think the bike lane would disrupt ingress and egress of condos along the road and would be counterproductive for bicyclists since there are no bike lanes at Sloan’s Curve just north of Ibis Way.
• South Palm Beach has received a $75,000 grant from the state Department of Environmental Protection for a vulnerability assessment. The town was one of seven Palm Beach County municipalities receiving grants totaling more than $1.4 million.
The others: Lantana $167,000, Belle Glade $200,000, Riviera Beach $300,000, Lake Clarke Shores $123,500, Loxahatchee Groves $350,000 and Mangonia Park $191,415.
• Palm Beach County sheriff’s deputies will conduct a traffic safety initiative March 13-17 to remind motorists heading to and from South Ocean Boulevard to stop and watch for pedestrians and bicyclists on walkways in South Palm Beach.
Motorists who don’t stop at the walkways, which are parallel to the road and obscured in some locations by blind spots, will get courtesy reminders.
Deputies will issue citations to repeat offenders.
The initiative, which follows a successful campaign conducted the week of Feb. 20, is meant to “shed more light on pedestrian safety by educating drivers to stop at sidewalks before pulling onto A1A,’’ Sgt. Mark Garrison said.
• The council approved a resident’s request to install an aluminum-framed pergola on the roof of 3550 S. Ocean Blvd. When completed, it will be the first such pergola on a condo roof in South Palm Beach.
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