Operator of Illegal Vacation Rental Business in Santa Monica Convicted
July 12, 2016 10:03 AM
SANTA MONICA, Calif. – The Santa Monica City Attorney’s Office successfully concluded the prosecution of Scott Shatford, a local operator of an illegal vacation rental business. Shatford had been charged with operating his illegal vacation rental business without City Permits, and refusing to comply with City Administrative Citations. This is the first conviction resulting from investigative work undertaken by the City’s newly established Vacation Rental Enforcement Task Force (the “Task Force”), a unit of the City’s Code Enforcement Division trained to target illegal vacation rental businesses operating in Santa Monica.
Prior to referring the case to the City Attorney’s Office, Officers from the Task Force attempted to work with and educate Mr. Shatford for many months, issuing multiple warnings and citations with fines. However, these efforts were unavailing. Instead of coming into compliance, Mr. Shatford continued to operate his illegal vacation rentals within various residential dwelling units within the City and he boasted publicly that he was “not concerned” about local law because it would be “difficult” for the City to enforce the law. As a result, the City Attorney’s Office commenced prosecution.
On July 5, 2016, Mr. Shatford pleaded “no contest” to the misdemeanor charge of operating his illegal vacation rental business in the City of Santa Monica. Under a plea agreement with the City Attorney’s Office, Mr. Shatford was placed on 24 months of probation and ordered to:
- Cease operation of all vacation rental business activities within the City of Santa Monica.
- Pay approximately $3,500 in fines and investigative costs to the City.
- Pay hundreds more in criminal fines, and victim restitution.
- Comply with all other applicable laws and permit conditions.
“This is a positive and fair result” said Salvador Valles, Assistant Director of Planning and Community Development, who has responsibility over Code Enforcement and the Task Force. “Last year, when the Council adopted Santa Monica Municipal Code Chapter 6.20, which reaffirmed the City’s longstanding prohibition against vacation rentals in Santa Monica, it clearly reiterated its deep interest in and concerns about protecting Santa Monica’s diverse permanent rental housing stock."
Our law provides for true home-sharing of a person’s home, however, the proliferation of vacation rentals, operated within residential dwellings like a hotel, do substantial harm to this housing diversity, often displaces long term rent-controlled tenants, and changes the character of our neighborhoods. "I am pleased that the Task Force, led by Code Enforcement Manager Sharon Guidry, in cooperation with our partners at the City Attorney’s Office, successfully prosecuted this case. Of course, even with this and other enforcement successes, there is much more work to be done.”
To report an illegal vacation rental business, contact the Task Force at 310-458-4984.
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Media Contact
Denise Smith
Senior Administrative Analyst
Denise.Smith@SMGOV.NET
Yibin Shen
Chief Deputy City Attorney - Municipal Law and Code Enforcement
Yibin.Shen@SMGOV.NET