OCEAN CITY – As rentals and seasonal housing are being booked for the upcoming summer season, the Property Review and Enforcement Strategies for Safe-housing Committee has scheduled a seminar to better educate the public of housing regulations to help ensure code compliance.

At the end of last summer, the Town of Ocean City addressed rental problems as the number of complaints began to grow. There were a couple of public hearings held before the Planning and Zoning Commission to consider a potential amendment to the City Code in regards to R-1 Single Family Residential District and MH Mobile Home Residential District for the purpose of regulating short-term and long-term rentals to protect the character and compatibility of the districts as single-family neighborhoods.

The public hearings came on the heels of growing complaints over rental properties. According to the city, there are 3,845 parcels included in the R-1 and MH districts with 276 of those obtaining rental licenses. Between 2013 and now, there have been 67 complaints logged in those areas over 19 months. Only 13 properties received complaints, which is 4 percent of the total number of 276. The complaints received are primarily from residents of the Mallard Island subdivision.

The hearings left standing room only in council chambers with the majority of speakers asking the commission to focus on enhancing the enforcement of existing rental regulations as well as complaints over overflowing trash, noise, parking congestion and the number of occupants of rentals being well over then the code allows.

Once the commission deliberated, the main points of focus to be forwarded to the Mayor and City Council for consideration were narrowed down to rental licenses having a 24/7 contact on file and existing rules and regulations be made more public and better educated. Additionally, it was suggested to impose stiffer fines, enhance enforcement, consider a seven day minimum for rentals in the R-1 district, and for the Property Review and Enforcement Strategies for Safe-housing (PRESS) to become more active.

Although there was no official action made to city laws, the PRESS Committee was reunited to regularly discuss issues.

The PRESS Committee is a group of town officials authorized to address communitywide quality of life issues which historically affect Ocean City during the summer season. The various department representatives join together to address property issues and violations related to noise, sanitation, overcrowding and building code violations.

This year, as a proactive measure, the PRESS Committee is hosting a Housing Compliance and Regulations Update Seminar for landlords, real estate agents, rental property owners, foreign exchange student sponsors and student advisory groups.  The meeting will center on the expectations of code compliance from various departments, including the police, building, zoning, fire marshal and finance departments,

“We have an obligation to hold properties to a high standard and ensure code compliance,” Assistant Director of Planning and Community Development Blaine Smith said. “While we have the ability to use enforcement by issuing citations for various violations, we also have a professional commitment to educate citizens to guarantee they understand our expectations.”

The Housing Compliance and Regulations Update Seminar will be held on May 5 from 9 a.m. until noon at the Roland E. Powell Convention Center.  Subject topics will include overcrowding, fire and life safety, noise, and other housing violations.

“Our goal in the PRESS Committee is to improve living conditions for residents and renters, and we think the Housing Compliance and Regulations Update Seminar is a positive way to start the season and hopefully a step in the right direction,” Smith said.

The PRESS Committee encourages all community members to report properties that they feel may be in violation of a safety, building or health code. Citizens with complaints or concerns are asked to contact Smith at 410-289-8855.