The city of Ottawa wants to look at short-term rentals downtown. The city got $75,000 from the Research in Illinois to Spur Economic Recovery or RISE Program last year. Mayor Robb Hasty says the city already has short-term rentals, but the money helps the city make sure they are being regulated correctly and they’re being taxed. The city will hire Place Dynamics LLC to make sure that any ordinance change that might need to be done is done correctly.
Hasty also says the consulting firm will help decide if a short-term rental should stay downtown and will decide what the cost of implementing short-term rentals is. He says if you’re doing renovations on downtown buildings, it can get difficult to pay for extra costs when it becomes a commercial space. The grant could later help developers who want to bring a short-term rental business. Hasty says that won’t happen until spring next year.