Battery Point homeowners in row with Hobart City Council over tourist rentals

A NUMBER of Battery Point homeowners are at loggerheads with the Hobart City Council over their plans to rent out their houses to tourists.

Battery Point Accommodation

A NUMBER of Battery Point homeowners are at loggerheads with the Hobart City Council over their plans to rent out their houses to tourists.

The suburb is one of Tasmania's most prized residential addresses and, given its heritage and proximity to Salamanca Place, it is also highly popular with holidaymakers.

A number of homes, including Robert Stevenson's renovated 1860s cottage, are advertised on accommodation websites such as Stayz and Airbnb despite the fact that such business is prohibited by the 1979 Battery Point Planning Scheme.

The Tourism Industry Council Tamania said the illegal practice was even more common in coastal areas such as Binalong Bay, Coles Bay and Bruny Island.

Mr Stevenson was gobsmacked to discover the council would not allow him to rent his three-bedroom house to tourists.

A recent letter from the council warned him to shut down the business or face "enforcement action".

"[Hobart Lord Mayor] Damon Thomas came in saying, 'Hobart is open for business' then there's the council sending out letters saying, 'Shut down or else'," Mr Stevenson said.

"Now I'll have to either sell or rent it out [long term] but the trouble is we've spent a lot of money on the furnishings."

He argued many houses in Battery Point were falling into disrepair because owners could not afford to maintain them.

In the picturesque enclave of Arthur Circus, another two owners are seeking permits to offer their houses as short-term accommodation, and an application was recently rejected in relation to a house in Kelly St.

Suzanne Solvyns and her husband live in Sydney but are aiming to semi-retire and spend half of each year in Hobart.

They bought their three-bedroom Stone Cottage in Arthur Circus in 2006 and regularly lend it to family, friends and overseas colleagues.

Although a previous application was rejected in 2007, the couple hope to persuade the council to allow them to rent their cottage to tourists for just 45 per cent of the year so they can use it for the rest.

Ms Solvyns said homes left vacant for long stretches were targets for vandals.

Alderman Thomas said the council was not conducting a blitz on illegal accommodation but officers did act when alerted.

The planning scheme did allow home owners to rent rooms to tourists, as long as they were in residence, he said.

TICTchief executive Luke Martin said: "A lot of them might not have public liability insurance. It's unfair to existing operators who have to meet all the licensing requirements."

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