Friday March 29th, 2024 10:17AM

Gainesville looks to address thorny issue of people living longterm in hotels

GAINESVILLE – By a vote of 5-2 the Gainesville Planning and Appeals Board recommended approval Tuesday evening of a package of amendments to the city’s Unified Land Development Code, but even those voting for passage of the package admit there will need to be significant modification to at least one of the eleven amendments.

Community and Economic Development Deputy Director Matt Tate told GPAB members that the amendments covered a wide array of topics that ranged from defining and regulating  “Hookah, E-Cigarette and/or Vapor Lounges” and sales outlets, to amending fence and wall heights and locations, to establishing new regulations for high-density housing, to defining a “Special Event Facility”, and other sundry issues.

“We come before this board time-to-time and propose code amendments, and tonight we have as many as eleven areas that we’ve been working on for a while,” Tate said in his opening remarks.

But the one amendment that drew the most attention, that evoked unanimous opposition from nearly a dozen citizens, the one amendment everyone on the GPAB agreed needing tweaking before going before the Gainesville City Council in about a month, concerned “Lodging Services” and “Extended Stay Lodging Services”.

That amendment would place limits on any future such establishments built within the city so that guests at “Lodging Services” (hotels and motels) could stay no more than 15 days, and that guests at “Extended Stay Lodging Services” could stay no more than 30 days.

Those who spoke strongly against that amendment represented a wide swath of people with experience dealing with housing challenges and the homeless situation in Gainesville:

  • Joshua Silavent, former local journalist and homeless advocate

  • Mike Freeman, retired pastor

  • Christine Osasu, Director of Community Outreach for Habitat for Humanity of Hall County

  • Dr. Ursula Harris, Gainesville City School Social Worker and Gainesville homeless liaison

  • Willie Mitchell, Vice-Chairman Gainesville City Schools Board of Education

  • Arturo Adame, local homeless advocate

  • Donald Croupat, currently living at an extended stay lodging facility in Gainesville

  • Richard Labriola, manager Hilton Garden Inn, Gainesville

  • Michael Fisher, Housing/Program Director, Ninth District Opportunity

  • Jay Singh, owner Guest Lodge, Gainesville

  • Kenneth Washington, General Manager Marriott Courtyard, Fairfield Inn and Suites, and Towne Place Suites by Marriott, all in Gainesville

All spoke in opposition to the stay limitations.

The three hotel owner/operators said many of those staying at their facilities for periods in excess of 15 days were there on extended business assignments. 

“Currently I have a large group staying at my hotel who are working on a project in Dawsonville, most of them are here for more than 17 nights,” Labriola told board members.

Labriola added that because the majority of reservations at his hotel are processed online, an undue burden would be placed upon him and his staff to monitor and enforce new code requirements because they don’t always have direct contact with guests.

Singh said he has guests at his hotel who are on special assignment at some of Hall County’s largest industrial sites, “These guys are staying three, six, nine months at times.  It’s just not practical for them to move hotels every 15 days.”

Washington spoke of a family who stayed at the Fairfield Inn for a month while their house, which was damaged by a fire, was repaired. “They had nowhere else to stay.”

Fisher said limiting stays would place an undue burden on homeless families because there is not enough affordable housing available in the area.  He asked board members about families forced to vacate the lodging facilities under the new guidelines: “Where are we going to put them?  Are we just going to give them freedom to go live on the street, because this is the last refuge for these families?  Being poor is not a crime.”

Tate told board members and the audience that the new code “grandfathers-in” those hotels and extended stay locations already in operation.  “This does not put people out on the street that are currently residing in hotels and extended stay hotels.”

Board members asked Tate if changes to the amendment were possible.

“We’re taking notes,” Tate said, gesturing to city staff members seated in the front row.  “A lot of us are taking notes on all these great points that everybody has made.  Before we go to (city) council I believe there will be an amended version to address some of these concerns.”

With that promise in tow, board members voted to approve recommendation for the all the amendments in the package.  Board members Jane Fleming and Carmen Delgado voted in opposition.  The matter now goes to the Gainesville City Council for consideration and adjustment, most likely in mid-December.

City council members George Wangemann and Barbara Brooks were in the audience for the public hearing and said afterwards they agreed that modification to the extended stay amendment was necessary.

“We have our work cut out for us,” Brooks said.  “It’s going to be a really tough one because it’s going to be tough to police everybody.”

Wangemann agreed, “My initial reaction after hearing everyone speak is that we’ve got to…change this ordinance so that it creates a better balance than we now have.”

GPAB chairman Doug Carter assured those in the audience, “Just know that the things you shared are not falling on deaf ears.  I think there’ll be a lot of good to come out of this…this code amendment is not going to be the ‘end-all’ to the situation of dealing with this problem.”

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