Residents gave mixed feedback last night on a proposal to ramp up enforcement capabilities for violations of Riverhead’s short-term rental code. Short-term rentals of fewer than 30 days have been prohibited in Riverhead since 2013.
The proposed changes, aimed at strengthening enforcement of the law prohibiting rentals of fewer than 30 days, would allow code enforcement to presume transient use based on publicly available information such as online listings, reviews, and visible activity at a property.
Property owners could rebut the presumption with clear and convincing evidence in court or before the Zoning Board of Appeals.
Town Attorney Erik Howard said prosecutors often struggle to secure convictions because short-term renters must testify in court, something that rarely happens. The new language is intended to close what he described as a persistent evidentiary gap.
Under the revised code, a finding of transient use would result in immediate revocation of the owner’s rental permit, with the opportunity for appeal to the ZBA. Penalties would significantly increase, starting at $3,000 and rising to as much as $30,000 for repeat offenses. The proposal also authorizes the town to seek civil penalties of up to $5,000 per day in court and to require online platforms to remove listings after receiving notice from the town.
Neighborhood impacts spark support for stricter rules
Several residents described ongoing problems with short-term rentals in their neighborhoods, including noise, traffic, trash and the constant turnover of guests.
One Aquebogue resident, Bob Klein, recounted a neighborhood’s long struggle with a rental property known, as Victorville by the Sea, that was being advertised as available to accommodate a large number of guests for short stays.
“He was advertising for 45 people in his home, renting out 16 rooms,” Klein told the board. “He hosted weddings, corporate retreats and bachelorette parties… Cars were parked on both sides of the street, and we couldn’t get emergency vehicles through. We had noise from parties going to three in the morning and trash eight times what a normal resident would put out.” He said he hoped the new rules would keep others “from going through what we did.”
Individual rooms were being offered for rent at rates ranging from $289 per night to $1,068 per night, with the entire property being offered for $4,900 per night on weekdays and $5,900 per night on weekends, according to papers filed in court by Riverhead Town in 2020, when it sued the owner in Suffolk County Supreme Court. The town eventually settled the litigation for a civil penalty of $25,000 in January 2025, more than a year after the owner sold the home for $1.675 million.
Other residents described similar impacts of short-term rentals on the quality of life in their neighborhoods.
“When you’re living on the beach and you have people coming every two weeks… when you have constant turnover, you don’t get to know people,” said Dan Sackowitz of Wading River. He said a two-week rental and a month-long stay “is just a whole different circumstance.”
Enforcement staffing prompts questions
Eileen DiCosola of Wading River questioned whether the town could effectively enforce the law with its current staffing levels. She said when she’s called the code enforcement division she’s been told the town had “only one” code enforcement officer. Howard replied that that is incorrect information. The code enforcement division includes a senior investigator, another investigator, two Spanish-speaking enforcement staff and has posted openings for two part-time positions, Howard said.
Fairness, economic needs and penalties divide opinion
Others raised fairness and consistency concerns, pointing specifically to cottages associated with local golf courses.
Astrid Lehman of Baiting Hollow questioned whether there are cottages at Friar’s Head golf club that are used as weekend or short-term rentals.
“You can’t pick the winners and the losers,” Lehman said, arguing that it “would not be fair to start dangling criminal charges over private homeowners… and not have anything addressed at those places” if they are being rented on a short-term basis.
Zuleika Hines of Riverhead said short-term rentals bring economic benefits to the town and the community at large, and there’s a real need for them — not just among tourists but for travelers coming to Riverhead for medical treatment at Peconic Bay Medical Center or to conduct business in the area. The town should consider allowing 14-day rentals, she told the board.
Hines said the town needs a better system for tracking where complaints originate, along with stronger enforcement capabilities.
“We need the enforcement, and we need to feel heard when we call about a violation,” she said. Only once residents have confidence in that process, she said, should the town consider allowing rentals for less than 30 days.
Some property owners said the proposed penalties go too far.
“I have to say I’m a little surprised to hear the extreme measures being taken against folks that rent homes,” said Michael Jones, who rents his home monthly. “I think it’s a little egregious what the town is doing here… a little extreme,” he said. He also warned that glitches or changes in Airbnb’s platform could unintentionally put law-abiding homeowners in violation, saying, “If someone misses it, I don’t think they should be extremely fined or possibly have jail time just because they accidentally change a setting.”
The hearing was closed with the record kept open for written comment until Nov. 28.
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