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(Cont. from page 3) show a primary residence for tax purposes,’ those little criteria would establish that for sure,” Wyatt said. “If you said, we only allow them in that situation, I think that we would get agreement from both the Coastal Commission and the residents that that was acceptable.” After the Dana Point City Council approves an STR ordinance, it will go before the California Coastal Commission for approval. The California Coastal Act maintains that development should not interfere with public access to the coast. STRs are generally seen as providing affordable lodging along the coast. The STR Subcommittee asked speakers if existing permits should be transferable to new owners. This would mean that if a house that was operated as a short-term rental was sold, the permit would be tethered to the property so that whoever buys the property inherits the permit. Though opinions were mixed, generally those who spoke at the workshop were against the ability to transfer permits. Deanna Slocum has lived in Capistrano Beach and has run an STR there since 2016. As a permit holder, she spoke against transferring permits. “Those of us that do have a short-term rental worked very hard and are very attentive, as evidenced by the enforcement situation to keep the peace, and I don’t know that a person that I would sell my home to would immediately have that same priority,” Slocum said. The STR Subcommittee also asked speakers to comment on whether there should be an annual cap on the number of nights rented. Speakers were generally in favor of a minimum stay length, but did not have strong opinions on an annual cap. When Mitchell Ludwig bought a house in the Lantern District, he was concerned that the short-term rental next door would be a nuisance. “I have to say it’s been 100 percent positive,” Ludwig said. “The owner of the property is very attentive to the property; he has given me his cell phone number if there’s ever an issue.” Out of the hundreds of renters his neighbor has had, there’s only been one issue, Ludwig said. “It was a little bit of noise after 10 o’clock, and I had an early morning,” Ludwig said. “I texted him, and he got his neighbors to quiet down. They apologized, I heard them over the fence, and they went to sleep, and that was the end of it.” The future of STRs in Dana Point remains uncertain as the Planning Commission and STR Subcommittee continue to work to develop a policy to regulate them. The subcommittee plans to draft a program through December with the hopes of presenting a draft STR program to the Planning Commission in early January. Dana Point Times November 12-18, 2021
The student-led group known as Engage held its first volunteer fair in hopes of connecting students with volunteer opportunities with local organizations. Photo: Lillian Boyd
Dana Hills Junior ‘Engages’ Students with Volunteer Opportunities
developing skills,” Anderson said. “Like if you’re interested in animals, then go do something where you can get experience volunteering with animals or something in that realm, so you can develop those skills. And then if you want to write about that on your resume, or your college application, you can say, ‘Look, I was interested, and I did something, and I learned more about it.’” Students interested in working with animals, for example, can volunteer at Goods and Goats, a goat yoga farm in San Juan Capistrano. Engage has also partnered with MATHmania Robotics, an organization that helps elementary school students learn robotics, and Laura’s House, a domestic violence shelter. Other partners include the American Red Cross, the Surfrider Foundation, Zero Trash Dana Point, Stand Up to Trash, and the Dana Point Chamber of Commerce. “We’re really proud of the opportunity and initiative that Sophie took in just empowering the students with different opportunities to get these hours,” said
BY BREEANA GREENBERG, DANA POINT TIMES
Sophie Anderson, a Dana Hills High School junior and founder of “Engage,” organized a volunteer fair on Tuesday, November 9, to introduce high school students to a variety of volunteer organizations. After many organizations were unable to take volunteers throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, the student-led group Engage hopes to connect students trying to find a way back into volunteering with organizations in need of volunteers. Anderson also hopes to show her peers that volunteering can take a variety of forms. “It can be great for not only fulfilling your community service hours but also
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Aakrsh Misra, a Dana Hills senior and president of the school’s National Honor Society. “These organizations are all great ways for students to get involved both in the community and school.” On-campus honors organizations, including the California Scholarship Federation and the National Honor Society, require members to reach a minimum number of volunteer hours. The volunteer fair offers a variety of ways in which students can fulfill their volunteer requirement. “I think that with the hundreds of members that we have in CSF, it just provides so many different opportunities for them,” said JT Williams, a Dana Hills senior and president of the California Scholarship Federation. “I have tons of students coming to me asking for different hour opportunities, and there’s only so many that we can provide within the school.” Anderson hopes to establish Engage’s presence on campus this semester and hopes to hold another volunteer fair next semester.
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