Lower Towamensing Township is tracking down documentation to prove a house is a short-term rental before issuing a notice of violation.

Brent Green, the township’s new zoning enforcement officer, told the township that he has been able to find 15 properties on vacation rental websites that have not obtained a permit. He thinks there may be two more properties, but is still working to on verifying it.

“All of them that have been provided, I have found on listings online, so I’m comfortable going with that. I just would like to have a little bit more,” Green said.

“You’re trying to get supporting documentation,” Supervisor Michael Takerer said.

Green said he is currently going through the township’s files to see what has been sent to these property owners and what has been returned.

“Half of them looks like they have applied in some way, shape or form, but they just didn’t move forward with it,” he said. “I would hope they would like to comply with the ordinance and they want to.”

The majority of these property owners are not local, so issuing a notice of violation and sending them to the magistrate is going to be difficult, Green said. If he’s going to issue a notice, he wants to make sure he has the evidence to back it up.

One type of documentation he is looking for is if they applied for a license through Carbon County for the hotel excise tax. That would show their intent for the property.

”Clearly they’re conducting this, and they can’t dispute it,” Green said.

It’s going to take a little more time before he is ready to start issuing these violation notices, but one of the township’s most vocal critics of short-term rentals is OK with that.

“I’m glad we’re finally at this stage, you know, chasing these guys,” said resident Steve Meining, who attends the supervisors meetings each month and asks about the status of the enforcement of the short-term rental ordinance.