Copyright Hartford Courant
The owner of three historic homes near a well-known center of dining and shopping in the Hartford region has won a court challenge to keep the properties as short-term, AirBnb rentals. The three houses on Raymond Road in West Hartford — a short walk from Blue Back Square — were at the center of a dispute with the town’s zoning enforcement office and a subsequent zoning board of appeals ruling in 2024 that the short-term use violated local ordinances. The properties — 136, 146 and 150 Raymond Road are among five houses purchased by Instant Property Solutions of Farmington, owned by real estate developer Mark Chu Jr., in 2023. The properties were purchased with the intent of renting them out as AirBnbs, one of them already previously used for that purpose. In an 18-page decision issued Oct. 31, Hartford Superior Court Judge Victoria W. Chavey noted that the district in West Hartford where the houses are located already allow multi-family rentals, and the district does not specifically distinguish between what constitutes a long-term rental and a short-term rental. “The court is not persuaded, therefore, to imply an unstated limitation on use,” Chavey wrote. The town “has not taken any position as to what distinguishes a short-term rental from a long-term rental, despite deciding in this case that all of the properties uses — which include rentals from a few days to a few months — are impermissible and despite the [zoning enforcement office] advocacy at the [ZBA] public hearing for a 30-day limitation,” Chavey wrote. The town’s “position in this regard only underscores the [zoning ordinances] themselves do not impose or support a distinction between long-term rentals and those of shorter duration,” Chavey wrote. The decision is the latest in a skirmish involving state and local governments and their aim to regulate short-term rentals, a use, they contend, can disrupt neighborhoods and otherwise takes up desperately needed housing. A year ago, the state Supreme Court issued a ruling viewed as potentially making it easier for Connecticut property owners to use homes as short-term rentals on platforms such as VRBO and AirBnb, CT Mirror reported. The state’s highest court said that a “residence” can include short-term rentals and doesn’t require a degree of permanency, reversing 2018 zoning regulations in Pine Orchard, a borough of Branford, according to CT Mirror. Much of Chavey’s ruling focused on the technical side of West Hartford’s zoning laws. In an interview, Chu said he had only one complaint from the surrounding neighborhood and otherwise had letters of support. “It’s a great decision for the town because, at the end of the day, West Hartford Center, Blue Back Square was sold to residents as a destination,” Chu said. “It was going to be one of the best places to visit in Connecticut, which it has. It has performed.” Chu said that when visitors travel to West Hartford, “there’s not of options for people to stay besides one hotel. It’s a beautiful hotel, but it’s outside the budget of a lot of people that come to town and that’s what I get for feedback from people who choose to stay in my places.” A lot of those seeking short-term rentals are people who are former residents and who still have family in the West Hartford, Chu said. Chu said he was allowed to operate the properties as AirBnbs while awaiting the outcome of the appeal. The town of West Hartford did not immediately respond to calls seeking comment. Chu also has a pending court appeal against the Town of West Hartford Historic District Commission. In June, the commission rejected plans for the construction of a duplex and five carriage houses with garages to the rear of the five properties along Raymond Road that are now rented as AirBnbs. Kenneth R. Gosselin can be reached at kgosselin@courant.com.
