As governor 30 years ago, Tom McCall issued his invitation to outsiders: "Visit, but don't stay." Cannon Beach is taking the opposite approach, telling the rest of the state, "Stay, but don't visit."
Cannon Beach has been a popular vacation city since long before its incorporation in 1959. Many of the houses became summer places. Owners of vacation houses often rented them out for the weekend or a week to other people.
In 1992, Cannon Beach prohibited new short term rentals and required existing short term rentals (houses rented for fewer than 14 days at a time) to obtain a license, and to stop renting by 1997. About 100 homeowners obtained licenses to rent. The city extended the deadline and it now expires in 2005. Ninety-one homeowners still have licenses to rent.
Last week the planning commission recommended to the city council that it not extend the deadline any further, which if followed by the city council would remove 91 houses from the vacation/tourist rental pool. (For comparison, Cannon Beach has about 700 motel rooms.) At a time when other Oregon cities are scrounging for visitors and the tourist dollars they bring, Cannon Beach's planning commission wants to cut the number of overnight guests by 10%.
Seaside, Gearhart, Manzanita, do you want some new customers? Cannon Beach doesn't.
FURTHER INFORMATION: The Cannon Beach Gazette has an article describing the events in more detail. (This link may not go to the right article when the next issue comes out, until I update it.)