91ÊÓƵ

Airbnb is a step closer to cementing its foothold in Portland’s economy.

The Planning and Sustainability Commission on Tuesday night voted 8-1 to approve staff recommendations for amending city code so that it allows short-term rentals in the city. Commission Chairman André Baugh issued the only dissenting vote, citing concerns about the impact that peer-to-peer rentals could have on housing affordability, according to Eden Dabbs, spokeswoman for the Bureau of Planning and Sustainability.

The recommendations next will go before Portland City Council.

In March, Airbnb, a peer-to-peer-driven hospitality company, announced that it will locate its North American operational headquarters in Old Town Chinatown. The company plans to renovate the 27,000-square-foot Blagen Block building on Northwest First Avenue, and move in later this summer.

Ironically, Portland city code doesn’t currently allow the type of short-term rentals that have caused Airbnb’s explosive growth in other cities around the world. People can rent up to five bedrooms in a house as a bed and breakfast for fewer than 30 days, but they must first go through an expensive and time-consuming conditional use review process, according to BPS. The proposed code changes would dramatically simplify that process.

Despite the status quo, Airbnb’s Portland listings have jumped from 107 in January 2011 to more than 1,550 today, according to BPS. During Tuesday’s meeting, Molly Turner, director of civics for Airbnb, elaborated on those numbers with a presentation.

In the past year, Airbnb documented 1,120 total hosts, 33,000 outbound users, and 48,040 inbound guests in the Portland area. That activity supported 660 jobs, and had an economic impact of $61 million, according to Airbnb. Turner added that 40 percent of hosts earn below the median household income, and that Airbnb provided a valuable means for supplemental earnings.

Some residents gave testimony at Tuesday’s meeting, contending that short-term rentals could deplete the stock of long-term rentals. Others disagreed, testifying that short-term rentals typically are offered only as parts of units already occupied by renters or homeowners.

Additionally, Sellwood-Moreland Improvement League members urged commissioners not to approve the code changes – not because they opposed Airbnb, but rather because they believed the Regulatory Improvement Code Amendment Project () was the wrong venue. The aim of RICAP is to update building and land-use regulations that hinder “desirable” development.