The Hialeah City Council sought to set a clear message at this week's council meeting: Hialeah is not the "wild west," and camping out in someone's backyard won't be tolerated.
The council approved an ordinance aimed at restricting residents from renting out recreational vehicles on their property as pseudo-apartments, a trend that's picked up steam in recent years. On websites like Facebook Marketplace, apartment seekers can find RVs listed as "1 bedroom apartments" for around $1,200 a month.
With the new ordinance in place, residents can only park one recreational vehicle up to 33 feet in length on a residential property, and only on a driveway. Residents cannot park more than one RV outside a home, and the vehicles are not allowed in a backyard. RVs 24 feet long and shorter can be parked in a front yard, but only if they are parked perpendicular to the sidewalk.
All RVs must be registered with the city with an affidavit proving the vehicle will will not be used as rental property. Any individual found in violation will have 60 days to comply with the law or else pay fines to the city.
The ordinance passed 4-2: Councilmembers Jesus Tundidor, Carl Zogby, Jacqueline Garcia-Roves and Monica Perez voted in favor; Bryan Calvo and Angélica Pacheco voted against. Luis Rodriguez was absent.
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At previous meetings, councilmembers claimed they received mounting complaints from residents that their neighbors were using campers and RVs as rental units parked outside their existing properties, and the tenants were causing disturbances.
Councilmember Tundidor, the item's sponsor, said he sees the issue as one of safety.
"This is a public safety issue. If a Category 4 or 5 hurricane came through Hialeah and we don't have a census of how many RVs we have in the city, we run the risk of hurting our residents," Tundidor told WLRN in an interview before the meeting.
Residents who already own multiple recreational vehicles that are registered with the state can call the City of Hialeah and request an administrative variance so they can avoid being fined under the new law.
Tundidor also said the legislation was aimed at protecting aesthetics of the city for people who have owned property in the city, saying that some areas have become like "illegal trailer parks" that are a burden on homeowners.
RV "apartment" rentals being illegal is nothing new in Hialeah. The practice has already been against city law for close to 20 years. But Tundidor sees the new ordinance as an enforcement mechanism. Now, if a resident sees multiple RVs parked in someone's yard, or finds one parked parallel to the home in the backyard — signs that someone might be renting them out — they can call it in and the city can step in and confirm if someone is occupying it.
Tundidor hopes this will prove to people that the council is serious about enforcing laws.
"People have made fun of Hialeah for far too long, saying you can do whatever you want here without a problem. That joke has come to an end," he told WLRN.
That was a sentiment echoed by Hialeah Mayor Esteban Bovo, who at Tuesday's meeting said that the city needs to crack down and change its reputation in the county as a city with lax enforcement.
"We need to draw the line and not continue allowing folks that live in other parts of Miami-Dade county to look at Hialeah as the Wild West and do whatever you want there," Bovo said from the dais.
The uptick in RV rentals in recent years has come as Miami-Dade County faces growing inflation, soaring home prices and rental costs, all combining into an affordability crisis that leaves county residents with a lack of affordable housing options. Hialeah itself has seen an uptick in popularity among outside renters, as working-class and low-income residents feel pressured to make ends meet and stay in the city.
Before the item passed, Councilmember Angélica Pacheco said she was concerned about the people currently living in trailers who would now be displaced.
"There are many cases that are families that are in great need. They're very vulnerable, very low income. And I'm concerned that we don't know exactly how many people are going to be affected by this," Pacheco said.
She asked if something could be done to help families who might be affected by the new law. Mayor Bovo responded that those people can be directed to county housing services, but refused to create what he called a "social service program" that the city could not sustain.
The ordinance will go into effect this week after the Mayor signs it into law.
