Letter: Neighborhoods are for residents

I disagree that Kailua needs short-term rentals to support a “vibrant” economy (“It’s time for a compromise on short-term vacation rentals,” Star-Advertiser, Island Voices, April 11).

What we need are businesses that support full-time residents. The so-called “vibrant” economy that Helen Petrovitch hurrahs has brought traffic, crime, overcrowding, strained infrastructure, higher consumer prices and a lack of full-time housing for all but those with a military subsidy.

On my street, Wanaao Road, there are three short-term rentals within spitting distance. With no common entry, no communal dining space, no commercial kitchen, no off-street parking, they are not B&Bs. They probably do have a homeowners’ property tax exemption and pay the same property tax rate I do.

Kailua is a residential community where we have a right to rest from our work, to be with our families and friends, with no obligation to entertain tourists or to fuel a “vibrant” economy.

Leigh Prentiss

Kailua

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