Loveland is undertaking a comprehensive rewrite of its planning and zoning code, with a proposed cap of 50 short-term rentals citywide and a limit of three properties per owner. The same July 28 council meeting that moved the zoning overhaul forward also approved hiring a planning firm to chart the future of the city's newest riverfront land.

Zoning code rewrite

City Council held a public hearing and first reading of an ordinance to adopt the updated Planning and Zoning Code at its July 28 meeting at Loveland City Hall, according to the city's official Facebook page. The rewrite is comprehensive, touching residential infill standards, administrative approval processes, parking requirements, signage rules and short-term rental regulations.

The short-term rental provisions would cap the total number of rentals at 50 across the city and bar any single owner or affiliated entity from operating more than three, according to the Let's Talk Clermont podcast, which covered the meeting. For downtown property investors and Airbnb hosts, those numbers represent the first hard ceiling Loveland has proposed on the growing vacation-rental market.

Council did not approve the ordinance on first reading. Members requested corrections and additional explanation before taking final action, and the next council meeting is scheduled for Tuesday, Aug. 11.

Schildmeyer riverfront master plan

At the same meeting, council approved a resolution authorizing an agreement with American Structurepoint, Inc. to prepare a master plan for the Schildmeyer Property and Veterans Memorial.

The Schildmeyer property is roughly 4 acres along the Little Miami River, a state and national scenic waterway running through downtown Loveland. The city purchased the parcel using Clean Ohio Program grant funding, with the Loveland Beacon reporting on March 16 that the city was nearing closing on the acquisition.

The property must remain primarily dedicated to conservation and passive recreation. The master-planning process will examine flood conditions, environmental restrictions and possible low-impact public amenities, according to the podcast's coverage.

American Structurepoint, headquartered in Indianapolis, maintains a Cincinnati office and offers planning, environmental and civil engineering services. The contract amount was not disclosed in public meeting summaries.

What comes next

The zoning code rewrite could return for further action at the Aug. 11 council meeting.

Council also affirmed appointments to a Veterans Memorial and Riverfront Advisory Ad Hoc Committee at the July 28 meeting, and city staff presented a request for a future public hearing on the sale of an easement to the Little Miami Conservancy. Residents can attend council meetings at Loveland City Hall or monitor agendas at lovelandoh.gov.