Town of East Fremantle grants permission for Airbnb residence on Sewell Street

EAST Fremantle’s town planning committee granted temporary approval for an Airbnb property at a meeting last week.

The Town of East Fremantle has no local planning policies relating to Airbnb but follows a set of guidelines set by the Western Australian Planning Commission in September 2009.

The Sewell Street property will accommodate four adults or two adults and three children through Airbnb.

The town planning meeting committee stated no vehicles could be on the council verge or across crossovers due to inadequate signage. The approval may also be revoked by council in the event of any adverse impacts involving noise, anti-social behaviour, parking or privacy control.

A spokesman for the Town said it was unknown how many Airbnb properties were listed in the area.

“All landowners are required to make an application for planning approval for short-term accommodation with the Town,” he said. “It may be the case that landowners who are listed (on) Airbnb have not obtained the relevant approvals and therefore are operating illegally.”

Currently, the council has not received any formal complaints about Airbnb properties.

“Council has not received any complaints directly associated with Airbnb (approved) short-term accommodation,” he said.

In 2017, the WA Local Government Association released its short-term rental accommodation and Sharing Accommodation discussion paper.

The paper provided an outline for councils on future policies and asked councils for feedback to help develop a draft recommendation. The Town has passed on that opportunity, with no submission being made.

“The Town does not currently have a formal position on this matter,” the spokesman said.