Lower Towamensing Township has received notices from nearly half of the short-term rentals currently operating in the township.

Brent Green, township code enforcement officer, gave an update at Tuesday’s board of supervisors meeting on the status of short-term rentals in the township.

Notices were sent out, and six of the 14 notices have been received.

Green then asked the board if they want to have a third party inspection, or have him perform them.

“I’m in favor having Brent do the inspection,” Supervisor Ian Farrell said.

Resident Steve Meining said he believes there’s been a trend of other municipalities significantly raising the fees.

In December, Meining said there were two-short term rental permits anticipated to be collected this coming year, but that there were 17 short-term rentals still going on.

Supervisor Michael Takerer told Meining that the board directed the township’s code enforcement officer to look into the matter.

Meining added that the matter of short-term rentals has been an ongoing for several years.

The township has budgeted for short-term rental fees.

In October, Green told supervisors that there were about 15 complaints for the year.

Then Supervisor Connie Brown asked Green if he’s received any complaints on short-term rentals.

Green said the township has gotten complaints on everything but short-term rentals.

Green said at that time 14 notices had to be mailed out for the short-term rentals.

The township’s yearly fee for short-term rentals is $1,050.

Meining has been asking the township to get the short-term rentals registered and legal per the township’s short-term rental ordinance.

He asked if a spreadsheet could be developed to track short-term rentals.

However, township solicitor Jim Nanovic suggested to Green that he not go that route.

Meining said his long-term goal is to keep the township under control.

Green previously noted that the township had been trying to keep short-term rentals in the dense population areas of the township.

He said the intent was to have notice to all adjoining property owners, and added the township was one of the first to come up with regulations.

Since the majority of the property owners of such rentals aren’t local, Green previously said that issuing a notice of violation and sending them to the magistrate would be difficult.