Staff Photo by Dan Henry / The Chattanooga Times Free Press- 6/23/16. Sam Latone and Ana Jimenez simulate a multi pitch climb at Sunset Rock atop Lookout Mountain on June 23, 2016 in preparation for an upcoming trip to Colorado. Lookout Mountain is one of the most charming places in the United States. It’s beautiful, history laden, iconic and even faintly exotic. Whenever I’m showing someone around Chattanooga for the first time, I always include a trip up the mountain, stopping by Point Park before cruising along the brows.
Only recently, though, did I learn some locals would like my visits to be as brief as possible – preferably extending no longer than Rock City’s operating hours and definitely not lasting overnight.
Earlier this week, Lookout Mountain, Tenn., officials voted to have their zoning rules changed, disallowing vacation rentals of less than 30 days while setting aside the rest of the town for single-family residences only. The message was clear: Move here or move on.
Apparently, some residents have become worried that short-term rentals (aka, property owners renting their homes out to vacationers) will wreak havoc on the tranquility of their neighborhoods. Just how large is this destructive tsunami of part-time rental properties? Get ready for it. Batten down the hatches.
A half dozen.