Not so fast.
The Raleigh City Council on Tuesday sent the issue of whether Airbnb can continue to operate to its Law and Public Safety Committee.
Airbnb is a part of the emerging “sharing economy.” It’s been described as sort of a “Hotel Uber.” Potential guests can go online and find hosts who want to rent out a room, a sofa bed, or other quarters in their home for a fee. The short-term rental endeavor has run into a snag with the city of Raleigh because it is considered a business operating in residential zoning areas.
“I’m actually very excited to take this to committee and deal with a very complex problem that I think we can really resolve,” said council member Mary-Ann Baldwin, who chairs the committee.
The committee meets on the second and fourth Tuesdays of every month. However, Baldwin said it would not be put on the agenda for the Jan. 27 meeting so that the staff could have more time to prepare for the meeting.
The next scheduled meeting after that would be Feb. 10.
The council also extended its moratorium for citing Airbnb hosts for zoning violations.