Several Airbnb owners in Crawford, after receiving violations from the building department, will appear at the town’s April 18 meeting to discuss regulations for short-term rentals and the value that their properties provide to the community.

Over the past few months, the town board has created a new policy establishing regulations for short-term rentals in Crawford. During the town’s Februrary 22 meeting, the board agreed to send the policy draft to its attorney for review. Supervisor Charles Carnes confirmed on April 15 that the board has not finalized its rental policy yet and that short-term rentals are presently not permitted within the town.

Within the last few weeks, several Airbnb owners received notices of violation from the building department for their rental operations. Dyer Halpern, an attorney for one of the affected rental owners, felt that the notices were confusing and unfair to these owners and sought to speak with the board on the matter.

“Here’s what you’re violating: having a bed and breakfast is prohibited in the Town of Crawford,” Halpern read from his client’s notice. “They’re not bed and breakfast, first of all. And second of all, bed and breakfast is not prohibited in the Town of Crawford.”

“It says the ‘Operator of the bed and breakfast shall be an owner of the property and an occupant of the dwelling,” he continued, now reading Crawford’s law on bed and breakfast properties. “That’s not really what these people (the owners) are doing, they’re doing something completely different.”

During the April 18 meeting, Halpern and the rental owners will request that the board consider reasonable regulations for short-term rentals and explain how these properties benefit the town. Halpern argued that Airbnbs and similar rentals bring tourism to the town and revenue to local businesses, especially to services that maintain said rentals.

“They bring a lot of tourism for Crawford, and Crawford certainly has stores that can certainly benefit from them,” Halpern said. “They have the hardware store, supermarket, they have lots of restaurants, and they have the alien museum.”

“Each Airbnb is supporting cleaning staff, landscaping staff, maintenance people,” he continued. “The money that goes into the community from having these properties is huge.”

Carnes prefaced that the board, while open to feedback from these owners during its upcoming meeting, will hold a more in-depth public hearing on the rental policy in May.