For over a year, I have wondered why Archuleta County has yet to provide a competent mapping tool for tracking STR Vacation Rental properties.
I contributed a series of articles to the Pagosa Daily Post, hoping to explain why mapping tools help inform taxpayers on the density of STR Vacation Rental properties, and possible violations witnessed by the public.
County Manager Derek Woodman commented previously that during 2020 and 2021 there was an ‘unnatural’ rate of growth in STRs, and his personal belief that current market conditions will provide a “natural adjustment to the market”.
For over a year, I’ve wondered why County Development Services has not provided a free, easy-to-use mapping tool to help inform the public on the magnitude of STR Vacation Rental proliferation, and to help assist the public to collaborate with local government officials on a reasonable STR Vacation Rental enforcement policy.
I’ve wondered where on a “Conscious Competence Matrix” are those responsible for assisting the public.
Yesterday morning, reading an editorial on County Development Services, I was not surprised to read that Archuleta County’s failure to provide a ‘customer portal’ on STR Vacation Rental properties may have been due to a gap in a software company’s competency, and now, two years later, the County is taking steps to remedy the situation.
Hopefully, County Development Services is aware that tools like Rentalscape exist… as implemented years ago in Ouray, Colorado.