Airbnb has emerged as popular service in the sharing economy that some have tried to create in Athens.
Next week, potentially, the Athens City Council will meet to decide whether I can welcome guests into my home. Sound crazy? It is, but such is the price I’m paying for renting out a room on AirBnB. What seemed like a great way to introduce guests to Athens and make honest money in the process has become a bureaucratic nightmare.
AirBnB is one of the many services that have emerged in recent years under the so-called sharing economy. It’s a modern innovation allowing us to convert underused resources like guest bedrooms or our cars (think Uber, Lyft, etc.) into entrepreneurial services.
And the sharing economy provides a service that works well in big cities like Columbus and especially in smaller ones like Athens. While there’s lots to see and do in Athens, finding a place to stay is sometimes impossible. During Ohio University homecoming in October, for example, most Athens hotels are already fully booked. Sleeping on a dorm room floor may be an option, but even that will cost you, and your back will hurt.
I thought I could help fill that gap. I started using AirBnB last summer, providing visitors a comfortable, affordable stay and a chance to enjoy what Athens has to offer. The earnings helped me with mortgage payments. My neighbors had no complaints, and I filed the income in my taxes. It seemed like a win for everybody.
Everybody except the Athens City Council, at least. Months after I began renting rooms I received a cease and desist letter, threatening me with a misdemeanor charge and $500 a day in fines.
My transgression, I learned, was supposedly operating a bed and breakfast in a part of the city where it was not permitted. Even if that were not the case, I would still need to undergo a code inspection, purchase a $100 permit, have a parking space for every room I rented and collect the city “transient tax” on overnight visitors.
For a city that prides itself on being forward thinking, this type of assault on 21st century technology is completely backwards. I wasn’t providing a “bed and breakfast” — I didn’t even serve breakfast. Yet such efforts aren’t stopping the sharing economy’s progress. Roomsharing has already become an accepted part of American hospitality, with 6 percent of Americans using AirBnB or similar services.
I wasn’t the only Athenian who saw the value in roomsharing. I filed a public records request for every such cease and desist letter issued and found 10 of them for last year alone. When I spoke up in favor of roomsharing at a city council meeting, others spoke up alongside me.
And that’s the thing — our stories are hardly unique. Millions of young people like me are tapping into the sharing economy to fight tough economic conditions. It’s projected to become a $335 billion global market within the next 10 years. In Athens, where unemployment remains above the national average, these opportunities can make a difference.
With all these obvious benefits, why then is the Athens City Council — and others like it across the country — standing in the way of progress? Here it’s probably adherence to rigid bureaucracy. In other cases regulations like these are likely designed to protect established industries and preserve a status quo. In the case of roomsharing, big hotel chains feel threatened by upstart entrepreneurs, often lobbying for them to be shut down or wrapped in red tape.
Unfortunately, using the power of government to shut down competition and innovation happens all over the country. This sets an awful example for students at the Ohio University hospitality program. In their own backyard, those waiting to make their mark on the future of American hospitality are getting a firsthand lesson that outdated regulations will be their biggest obstacles.
Athenians should stand up for the 21st century when the city council meets next week. What’s happening here should serve as an example for would-be entrepreneurs nationwide. Roomsharing and other innovations deserve smart regulation — not inflexible deadbolts against the future.
Abe Alassaf is an Athens resident and 2012 Ohio University graduate.
