Short Term Rental Permit Denied by Planning and Zoning

[Angie Thorn]

We purchased our first short term rental property on July 3rd in Fox Lake, IL. We did a lot of research in the are and strategically bought in this city since they allow short term rentals per their ordinance. Part of the short term rental approval process is having a public hearing where questions from the planning and zoning committee should be addressed by the property owners. We have been to 2 consecutive hearings now where the planning and zoning committee would not approve our permit because the neighbors "don't want it". 

The first time we attending the hearing they asked us to address the concerns of the community and "get to know our neighbors" before they would consider approving us. We did what they asked -- had signs put up in the area to make it more safe, asked for additional police presence in the neighborhood because the neighbors feel "unsafe", invited all 20 houses to an open house to get to know us and address concerns, installed ring cameras, addressed parking concerns, the list goes on with actions we have taken to address the issues.........as of last night the planning and zoning committee denied us again based on the protest of the neighbors at the hearing. 

Also, one of the members of the planning and zoning committee has an STR in Fox Lake and he was allowed to vote on our petition and of course voted 'No". This seems like a major conflict of interest.

Has anyone dealt with a situation like this before? We have complied with every single part of the ordinance and completed steps above and beyond what is listed in the ordinance. There are currently over 40 STRs approved in the area but we are still getting shut down by the city because the neighbors "don't want it".  I need advice!!