Lanesborough Planning Board advances short-term rental bylaw toward June town meeting vote

LANESBOROUGH -- March 17, 2026, Lanesborough Planning Board votes to limit short-term rentals to owner-occupied properties in residential zones. The board approved several key provisions of its draft short-term rental bylaw at the March 17 meeting, including revised registration language requiring all operators to register with the town clerk and stripping a requirement that owner contact information be displayed on rental exteriors. A motion by Leanne Yinger to restrict non-owner-occupied rentals to one unit per residential property failed 1-2, but a follow-on motion by Joe Tribus permitting one short-term rental per owner-occupied residential property passed 3-0. Building Inspector Brian argued that framing the limit around "non-owner occupied" rather than corporate entity type would be "way easier" to enforce at registration. The board also voted unanimously to split its sign bylaw revision into two separate warrant articles and to forward the ADU article to the Select Board, and scheduled a special April 13 meeting to finalize the STR bylaw before the June town meeting warrant deadline. State Department of Revenue data cited in public comment lists 49 short-term rental properties in Lanesborough, at least eight held by corporate entities.