Airbnb ban in Lafayette, WL single-family neighborhoods up for votes Monday

Airbnb pushes back ahead of city, county votes, in a week where one (potentially) final short-term rental approval had all the hallmarks of a heated debate in the past year.

Monday could signal the end of new Airbnb and Vrbo-style rental homes in single-family neighborhoods in Lafayette and West Lafayette, as well as much of the rest of Tippecanoe County, with proposed restrictions on short-term rentals up for votes.

The proposed change in the county’s zoning ordinance, requested earlier this year by the West Lafayette City Council, received a unanimous recommendation on June 18 from the Area Plan Commission.

The potential Airbnb ban in certain neighborhoods came after months of attempts to stop a growing trend of short-term rentals in a university city trying to cope with a housing shortage.

Since then, Lafayette Mayor Tony Roswarski asked that the city be included in the proposed zoning regulation as inspectors see more interest from out-of-town investors looking to buy homes in single-family neighborhoods and convert them in short-term rentals.

Both city councils meet Monday evening and have the proposed ban on their agendas.

And Tippecanoe County commissioners have the measure on their agenda Monday morning. A vote in favor there would cover the unincorporated parts of the county.

Airbnb is pushing back.