Airbnb host, city officials talk about short-term rental recommendations

By Judy J. Beasley Last updated Dec 8, 2022

WICHITA, Kan. (KSNW) – Over the past year, Travis Dorion has hosted guests at one of his properties through Airbnb and VRBO. He plans to list two more short-term rentals in the near future.

“The Wichita area is just starting to gain traction in the Airbnb space,” Dorion said.

Over the past four years, the number of Airbnbs in Wichita has more than doubled. However, city officials say each of the more than 400 short-term rentals is out of code.

Dorion says that while he (and dozens of others in the close-knit short-term rental community of Wichita) is all for additional health regulations and proper permits, he is currently questioning other recommendations offered by the city on Tuesday.

“We don’t oppose it,” Dorion said. “I think we just need to get on board and on the same page [on] what it looks like – how it affects us as hosts.

The recommendations derived from an April 2021 shooting at a Wichita Airbnb that left one person dead.

District 4 Councilman Jeff Blubaugh said his biggest concern was with a recommendation to limit the number of short-term rentals within 600 feet in the future.

“There can only be one in that 600ft – 600ft may not seem like a lot…I counted nine blocks,” Blubaugh said. “I don’t think it’s necessarily fair to knock others out.”

However, Wichita Mayor Dr. Brandon Whipple said those recommendations still have a long way to go before they are set in stone, adding that the city could take a more focused approach to self-help. saying problem areas.

“We’ve heard from some neighborhood associations that have had really bad experiences with Airbnb within those communities while acknowledging that we’ve had parts of our community where Airbnb has been very successful, so we’re trying to walk on that line,” Mayor Whipple said.

Blubaugh says he’s asking for data on the number of calls to police about short-term rentals the city has received.

City officials point out that if the 600-foot radius limit is put into effect, all pre-existing short-term rentals will be grandfathered into this policy.