White v. Village of Sister Bay

Case Name: White v. Village of Sister Bay

Type of Case: Preserving Democracy Project 

Court: Door County Circuit Court

Filed On: June 20th, 2024

Current Status: A Judge Granted WILL a Temporary Injunction.

DOOR COUNTY VILLAGE CUTTING SHORT TERM RENTING OPTIONS AHEAD OF THE SUMMER

June 20, 2024 | WILL and Attorney Bjorn Johnson have filed a lawsuit against the Village of Sister Bay on behalf of their clients for unlawfully refusing to issue a permit to rent their property.

Door County Judge Grants Temporary Relief to Short Term Rental Owners in Sister Bay

June 27, 2024 | A Door County judge has sided with the Wisconsin Institute for Law & Liberty and Attorney Bjorn Johnson and issued a temporary injunction against the Village of Sister Bay. The injunction will allow Captains Cottage LLC to resume short-term rentals while the Village considers their appeal.

The Lawsuit: Wisconsin law gives homeowners the right to rent their home on a short-term basis. Wis. Stat. § 66.1014. Property owners also have a right under Wisconsin law to continue a non-conforming use after a change to local zoning laws, preventing municipalities from retroactively applying zoning changes to existing properties. Yet Sister Bay has taken the position that, by applying for a short-term-rental license, properties lose any vested non-conforming features of their property.

Village Ordinance § 18.56(F) also gives property owners a right to appeal the denial of a short-term-rental license to the Village Board of Trustees. Defendants violated that plain legal right by: (1) failing to create an “Appeal Form” or adopt an “appeal fee,” which, per the ordinance, are required to appeal; (2) refusing to provide the Whites with any appeal form or inform them of the amount of the fee when they asked for it; and (3) rejecting their attempt to appeal for failing to pay a fee that doesn’t exist.

Background: WILL and Attorney Bjorn Johnson have filed a lawsuit against the Village of Sister Bay on behalf of their clients Captains Cottage LLC, a short-term rental in the Village for unlawfully refusing to issue Captains Cottage a permit to rent the property.

CASE DOCUMENTS

 

Luke Berg

Luke Berg

Deputy Counsel

Lucas Vebber

Lucas Vebber

Deputy Counsel

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