A Carrollton couple’s petition to list their home as a short-term rental on AirBnB.com cleared its second-to-last hurdle under a new county ordinance on July 23, securing a 6-3 recommendation for approval from Isle of Wight County’s Planning Commission.

The proposal requires a final vote by the Board of Supervisors.

Last year, county supervisors adopted zoning ordinance changes that legalized and created a process for regulating the whole-house rentals that have become popular on websites like AirBnB and Vrbo.

Lucy Kooiman, the property owner, told commissioners that she and her husband, Jeremy, thought they were in the clear to continue operating their waterfront home on Shivers Mill Lane as an AirBnB when Gov. Glenn Youngkin signed a General Assembly bill limiting localities’ authority to restrict certain types of short-term rentals in April.

But the new state law that prohibits localities from prohibiting or requiring a conditional use permit for short-term rentals pertains only to accessory dwelling units attached to or on the same property as an owner-occupied residence, and only nullifies local ordinances passed after Dec. 31 of last year.

Isle of Wight adopted its now-grandfathered ordinance on Dec. 14, which allows a streamlined approval process only if no neighbors object in writing within a 30-day window. If anyone objects – and one neighbor did – the approval process stops and a homeowner is required to apply for a $1,200 conditional use permit, which requires public hearings and votes by the Planning Commission and Board of Supervisors.

July 23 marked the first conditional use permit hearing under Isle of Wight’s ordinance. To receive final approval, the Kooimans will have to wait until Aug. 15 for another hearing, and possible same-day vote, by the Board of Supervisors.

Lucy Kooiman says she and her husband have been operating the property as a rental without incident since 2018. Neighbor Jeffrey Ornoff, in his April 10 written objection to the Kooimans’ application, states he’s been opposing it for nearly as long.

Bryan Peeples, a Virginia Beach-based attorney representing Ornoff, argued at the July 23 hearing that Shivers Mill Lane is a “quiet residential neighborhood” and not intended as a tourist destination.

Kooiman, however, contends she doesn’t allow parties, pets or other activities that would make loud noises.

Commissioner Raynard Gibbs made the motion to recommend approval of the Kooiman’s application and was joined by Commissioners Thomas Distefano, Cynthia Taylor, Matthew Smith, Brian Carroll and Chairman Bobby Bowser in supporting it. Commissioners Jennifer Boykin, Rick Sienkiewicz and George Rawls cast the three dissenting votes.

Boykin had raised concerns over the multiple times the Kooimans have sought after-the-fact approvals for properties they own in the area, though County Attorney Bobby Jones contended the couple’s track record was not relevant to the current application.

“It’s not a land user application; it is a land use application regarding this particular piece of property,” Jones said.