CANMORE – A Canmore property owner isn’t disputing he used his house as a tourist home.
But he is asking the Subdivision and Development Appeal Board (SDAB) to let guests who had booked the home before a stop order was issued to use it as a vacation spot for the summer.
Hans Herchen, the owner of 133 Wapiti Close, asked SDAB to permit the eight remaining bookings, meaning it would continue to be an illegal vacation rental until Sept. 8.
“I give you my commitment that as of Sept. 8, with your respectful cooperation, it will not continue,” he said at a Thursday (June 27) appeal board hearing.
Herchen, who apologized multiple times to the board, said after the stop order was issued April 26 he took down listings for the home on Airbnb and VRBO. He noted he was “very cautious” about who he let use the home, noting it was mainly families visiting the region.
He said he primarily has friends, family and co-workers use the home, but would look at doing monthly rentals rather than short-term use.
“I was simply doing what so many people in Canmore were doing and I was under the assumption that it was acceptable,” Herchen said, adding he typically did about 15 online bookings a year.
As an olive branch, Herchen said he would donate the money from the eight remaining vacation rentals because “I really don’t want to disrupt these people.”
The quasi-judicial board, however, wasn’t impressed in its line of questioning.
Several members highlighted how he had previously been issued a stop order in 2018, which he also appealed and went in the Town’s favour.
Board members also noted he could have reached out to the remaining bookings when the stop order was issued, but hadn’t done that.
“I apologize and I didn’t do it, so I apologize for that,” Herchen said.
The Town issued a stop order April 26 following a lengthy investigation. There had been several public complaints dating back to spring 2023. Town staff found the property had advertisements on Airbnb and VRBO, which included several online ads with pricing ranging from $1,292 and $2,415 a night.
There were also multiple reviews of short-term stays at the Wapiti Close home. Additionally, several photos from 2022-23 showed several vehicles parked at the home.
“The advertisements indicate use of the property in a manner which is consistent with the definition of tourist home in the land use bylaw,” stated a staff report. “Specifically, the intent of occupants to stay for short-term vacation purposes (nightly rental), the use of a system of reservations, commercial nature of use, and advertising as a vacation property.
"Neighbourhood reports of a pattern of use involving short-term vacation stays also helped to confirm the use of the property as a tourist home.”
The staff report highlighted the home is outside of where tourist homes are permitted. The development permit for the home – issued in 2008 – allows only for a single-detached home and not a tourist home.
Jerritt Cloney, a planning technician with the Town, told the board the area “has never been considered appropriate for tourist home operations” and a development permit would need to be received from Town staff to do so. However, he emphasized since the area isn’t in a tourist home permitted use area, such a permit wouldn’t be provided.
Jennifer Sykes, Herchen’s lawyer from Calgary-based Caron and Partners, said the two issues Herchen had concerns with were the pre-existing bookings and having a statutory declaration that would allow Town staff more latitude to check if the property is being used for tourist-based purposes.
The first scheduled meeting earlier in June was postponed since Sykes wasn’t able to attend due to a previous court appointment.
Herchen’s appeal claimed the order wasn’t properly issued, “given the history of the property and past enforcement steps taken against the owner.”
“For the most part, Hans has complied. My client is not disputing that this property was posted on Airbnb,” she said.
“This is an inappropriate requirement. … This is a gross invasion of privacy. We’re talking about Hans’ home and his family home. Hans does not consent to have the development authority come into his home and take photographs of his personal property nor should he have to.”
Eric Bjorge, a supervisor with the Town’s planning and development department, said such a declaration would allow municipal staff to “take immediate action if there were additional issues of non-compliance in the future” and the “purpose is to get long-term compliance with the property.”
Bjorge highlighted Town staff are sympathetic to people who booked to use Herchen’s home, not aware it was an illegal use, but it would continue to impact residents.
“In fairness, largely to other property owners in the community, there are many who would love to operate a short-term rental, even for a two-month period, so to give implicit permission to continue to operate to this particular property is inappropriate,” he said.
He noted the Town gave a three-week timeline for compliance and it had been two months since the stop order was given.
Herchen said many of the photos provided as evidence were friends, family and co-workers, which he’s allowed to do as a property owner. He said the Town gave him no advance warning before issuing the stop order.
“It is my freedom as a property owner to have 10s of my friends over or family, spouses and their children or employees of my organization,” he said. “There’s been many times when it's been me and I look at the picture of the cars, I have personally led to that situation multiple times and a little bit of misinterpretation and a little bit of misjudgment.”
Cloney said the Town investigates potential illegal use of tourist homes on a complaint basis and between emails and calls, had received close to 50 complaints about Herchen’s property.
Rob Owen, a resident of Wapiti Close, wrote in a letter to SDAB how his family and neighbours “feel negatively impacted” by 133 Wapiti Close.
“There are regular large party renters of this property that are significantly disruptive to the community, including excessive noise in the hours between 10 pm and 4 a.m. and illegal … and excessive parking of vehicles in the quiet cul-de-sac that we all reside,” he wrote.
Glen Phillips, another long-term resident of Wapiti Close, echoed the concerns of Owen’s letter and stated he had also made multiple complaints to the Town about 133 Wapiti Close.
“We have been subjected to multiple noisy weekend parties – male stags and female stagettes involving groups of more than 20 people. It is a constant parade of cars and people, most summer weekends – some respectful – some not,” Phillips wrote.
Multiple other property owners on Wapiti Close and Benchlands Terrace expressed concern about the property.
Bruce Mathews and Nancy Fraser wrote in a letter to the board they have experienced year-round issues from Herchen’s Wapiti Close home.
“We have been awakened at [3 a.m.] and [4 a.m.] on numerous occasions to noise so loud that we can actually make out the entire conversation that is occurring above us. It is literally like they are sitting in our bedroom,” stated the letter.
Herchen said he “tried [his] best to listen to [neighbours]” but they would either leave notes at his property or come uninvited.
“I am remorseful for the mistakes I have made. I never want to be at this [board] again. I have other objectives in life than to achieve some type of strange victory where I get to do this indefinitely. It’s not my goal,” he said. “I have family and business to take care of. It’s not my goal to ever be here again. I’m more than happy to abide by the laws of Canmore and do it respectfully and I apologize that I even had to bring [everyone] here.”
