Just when you thought the vacation rental drama in South Lake Tahoe was over, the City Council just dropped a plot twist that’ll have property owners and locals buzzing.

On June 17, the council approved an amended vacation home rental (VHR) ordinance that’s essentially giving a second chance to previously permitted rental owners, but with some serious strings attached.

A Limited Window of Opportunity

The city’s throwing a lifeline to specific VHR owners, but it’s not exactly a free-for-all. The initial 60-day permit application period, starting June 23, is exclusively for those who had VHR permits in good standing before Measure T shut down most neighborhood rentals. Think of it like a VIP pass for the rental comeback tour.

Neighborhood Protection Mode

To prevent the dreaded “rental zone” phenomenon, the new ordinance includes a strategic 150-foot buffer between single-family VHR properties outside the Tourist Core. Translation: No block-long Airbnb takeovers, thank you very much.

The Application Game

Applications will be processed faster than fresh powder on a powder day, but only if they’re complete and accurate. The online portal goes live at 9:00 a.m. on June 23, and the city’s basically saying: submit your best, most buttoned-up application if you want a shot.

The ordinance becomes official on July 17, marking another chapter in South Lake Tahoe’s ongoing vacation rental saga. For those keeping score, this feels less like a policy update and more like a high-stakes game of rental roulette.

Stay tuned, because the City Council has already scheduled a September 9 meeting to review implementation and enforcement. Something tells us this story is far from over.