In a raucous, three-hour meeting yesterday, opponents and supporters of bed-and-breakfast operations clashed over a plan to lift a ban on the establishments while also imposing new restrictions on vacation rentals.

More than 150 people came out for the first public hearing on the proposal, easily filling up a large conference room at the Neal Blaisdell Center and booing and hooting during testimony for or against the amendments to the city ordinance.

Opponents say bed-and-breakfasts and vacation rentals chip away at the sense of place in neighborhoods, open up residents to increased property thefts, and are an all-around nuisance with noisy parties, parking problems and late-night arrivals.

Approving the measures would be "turning the community over to the wolves," said Don Bremner, spokesman for Save Our Kailua, a vocal opponent of bed-and-breakfast operations and vacation rentals. "We want to keep the prohibition."

But rental operators and others say the businesses thrive around the world, offering tourists a way to learn more about a place and interact with residents.

They also argue that regulating the industry — instead of banning it — would address the concerns of some neighbors, while allowing more bed-and-breakfasts and vacation rentals to meet what they say is a growing market demand.

If passed, the amendments would dramatically overhaul the city ordinance on short-term rentals passed in 1989, which banned the establishment of new bed-and-breakfasts.

Currently, there are fewer than 100 bed-and-breakfasts operating under noncomforming use permits, in which owners take in renters for less than 30 days. About 1,000 owners have permits to rent an empty home for less than 30 days, the city has said.

Angie Larson, coordinator for Homes of Hospitality of Hawai'i, said the loose organization of vacation rental operators has about 400 members. Most want to work with the city and opponents to hammer out a solution that works for everyone, she said.

"We hear the other side," she said. "But we live here, too."

The crowd at the hearing yesterday was just about split between those supporting and opposing the amendments. Most of the residents who came out against the proposal were from Windward O'ahu or the North Shore.

GROWING CONTROVERSY

The growing controversy over bed-and-breakfasts and transient vacation rentals largely came to a head two years ago, when residents took their concerns to neighborhood boards and the City Council. The most vocal opponents to the operations live in Kailua, where there are a host of vacation rentals.

The hearing yesterday before the city Planning Commission was the first chance residents had to sound off on the proposed amendments. No other hearings are scheduled, but officials have said they will have more meetings soon.

Planning commission members stayed mostly quiet throughout the meeting, but did ask the city Department of Planning and Permitting how it would handle the probable flood of applications for bed-and-breakfasts if a ban on the establishments is lifted. The city said it would hire more employees.

The city Department of Planning and Permitting drafted the proposed amendments, which are set to go before the City Council after a review by the city Planning Commission. Comments made during the public hearings will be incorporated into the decision-making process, officials said.

So far, there's no timeline for when the amendments will go before the council for final consideration.

The first proposed amendment calls for the repeal of the existing bed-and-breakfast law, allowing them in residential communities, while also setting up ways for neighbors to block the homes before they open.

The second amendment requires transient vacation units, including bed-and-breakfasts, to include the permit number and addresses for units in advertisements.

And it establishes fines for noncompliance.

FOR AND AGAINST

Delorese Gregoire, who used to operate a tour group, said vacation rentals provide a unique way for tourists to feel closer to the place they're visiting. She supports setting up reasonable guidelines for rentals — and lifting the ban on bed-and-breakfasts — and said the amendments are a step in the right direction.

"Please keep this way of staying in the Islands something that people can enjoy," Gregoire told the commission. "Everyone benefits from this arrangement."

Dolores Sandvold, who operates a vacation rental with her husband on the North Shore, said most visitors who stay in rentals are quiet and well-behaved.

"We want our tenants to be a positive addition to the neighborhood," she said.

But Virginia Enos, a Lanikai resident, said vacation rentals aren't good for anyone — except their owners.

"It's destroying our community," she said. "The majority of the people who live in our community want this regulated."

She and others also said the city has been unable to keep up with vacation rentals operating illegally. Though the city says it has been fining illegal rentals, residents say enforcement is sporadic and far from enough of a deterrent.

Reach Mary Vorsino at mvorsino@honoluluadvertiser.com.