Short-term rental experts explain industry s impact on Summit County s affordable housing issue summitdaily.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from summitdaily.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
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Summit County continues to make a steady comeback in its sales tax collections as the local economy rebounds from the pandemic. Though significant growth is still happening, recent sales tax reports show that collections from short-term lodging, hotels and inns stalled slightly during May in some areas.
According to Frisco’s sales tax report, the town’s collections for the month were up 45% compared with May 2020, which is a slight dip compared with sales tax collection growth the month before. The town’s April report showed its collections were up 55% compared to the same month in the prior year.
Photo by Tripp Fay
This time last year looked very different. Fourth of July parades were canceled, social distancing and masks were in full effect and some towns went as far as not planning any celebrations at all.
The limited celebrations and travel restrictions made for an unconventional summer in Summit County, but this year paints a very different picture as about 74% of Summit County’s population is fully vaccinated and 82% have received at least one dose, according to Summit County’s website
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The reopening of the community earlier this spring gave the local lodging industry more time to prepare for the hordes of visitors expected this summer, Toby Babich, president of the Breckenridge Lodging Association reported.
In response to the town of Breckenridge’s suggested short-term rental moratorium, a group of community members and local officials created a coalition at the beginning of March to find housing solutions for the workforce.
Part of the coalition’s mission is to gather information about how property owners, particularly second-home owners, use their property. To do this, the coalition launched a survey April 16, which has garnered nearly 3,000 responses. The deadline to take the survey is 5 p.m. Friday, May 7.
The group was started by Toby Babich, president and CEO of Breckenridge Resort Managers and president of the Vacation Rental Management Association. Other group members include Summit County Commissioner Tamara Pogue and Summit Realtors Executive Director Sarah Thorsteinson.
Photo by Tripp Fay
Spring break meant high occupancy levels for the Breckenridge lodging industry this year, with bookings up 6% over the period compared to 2019. While private security was hired by Breckenridge to enforce public health orders, lodging companies didn’t report trouble when it came to visitors respecting town, county and state rules.
Bill Wishowski, director of operations at the Breckenridge Tourism Office, reported in an email that average occupancy in town reached 78% between March 6 and April 3, with a peak of 89% on March 18. During the peak spring break week from March 12 to March 20, average occupancy was at 85%.
Breckenridge placed private security guards on Main Street from mid-March through the beginning of April to enforce public health orders and town ordinances, including mask-wearing in the town’s mandatory mask zone. The idea was to support front-line workers from visitors who may be disgruntled over local COVID-19 restrictions.