(10/15) October’s Town Council Workshop on a proposed town code amendment to allow student housing in the Village Zone District came to a quick end in front of a skeptical council.

The proposed amendment was a result of repeated violations received by David Ott for using his properties at 101 and 105 West Main Street, which are zoned as single family residential, but are instead rented to students. Under the Town’s current code, student housing is not allowed in the village zone.

According to Town Attorney Leslie Powell, when Ott’s contractor submitted the zoning permit application in 2022, it was "incorrectly filled out" to rent to single families without the intention of renting to students. That statement, however, met with mutters of "unbelievable" from members of the audience who had come to voice opposition to the proposed amendment.

After complaints about parking and excess trash caught Town staff’s attention, Ott was warned to correct the violations or his permits would be revoked. Town staff also noted that Ott had moved students in prior to obtaining occupancy permits.

Ott was formally cited after he continued to rent to students after the warnings were issued. Ott’s attorney met with Powell and Ott was told he could only rent to families. If he wished to rent to students, he was told the code prohibiting renting to students needed to be amended.

Student housing differs from boarding and rooming houses because of the intended purpose and occupancy. Student housing requires special considerations because of the transient nature of students and the potential impact on surrounding properties due to parking issues, excess trash and noise complaints.

Ott’s attorney pointed out that many homes have been rented to students in the village zone for years, however, this is just the first time there have been any complaints. "This has been going on for a long time, we’re just the ones that got caught," Ott’s attorney said.

Powell stated that the current use of Ott’s two dwelling units allows for a single household group which carries the attributes of buying food together, cooking meals together, sharing expenses and having one lease. With student housing, each student is responsible for those things themselves.

The Town Council listened to the give and take between the Town staff and Ott’s attorney, but when pressed to make a decision on the proposed amendment, the Council opted not to until they could gather more information.

Commissioner Valerie Turnquist shared a collection of police reports describing destruction of property, disorderly conduct, trash complaints, noise complaints and more that are all linked to students. "I don’t have a problem with students, but I think these are issues that need to be addressed by an ordinance," she said. "We need to determine, as a town, what we want Main Street to look like going forward."

Commissioner Amy Pollitt asked if Gettysburg could be used as an example for the creation of a rental agreement that would outline rules and regulations to protect neighbors, landlords and renters.

Former Commissioner Diane Walbrecker, an active participant in the Town’s Comprehensive Plan, said this situation is the perfect opportunity to look at the Town’s Housing Code and make sure it allows the kind of diverse housing that is needed in town. "I think our town needs to become more flexible in giving people the ability to create the kind of community that we want."

Pollitt agreed, stating, "Sometimes we realize the code needs to be updated through situations like this." At Pollitt’s request, the Council voted unanimously to defer making a decision on the amendment.

The Council instead proposed holding another public workshop and to advertise more widely, in hopes of gaining a broader range of input from residents on the implications of formally allowing student housing in Emmitsburg’s downtown.

"We need more residents to weigh in," said Pollitt and Turnquist.