Pacific Grove issues a number of short-term rental permits in error.

Pacific Grove officials are in damage-control mode after planners issued about a half-dozen permits inconsistent with city law regarding short-term rentals.

“We did have some cases that needed to be better handled than they were by one planner,” City Manager Tom Frutchey says. “[We’re working] to clean up those issues.”

One of those cases involves a house on Sunset Drive, which Morna Mellor bought in 2011 for over $1.2 million.

In December 2013, P.G. Associate Planner Matthew Feske approved an administrative use permit allowing Mellor to rent out both the main house and a smaller apartment on her property. Mellor’s attorney, Pam Silkwood of Carmel firm Horan Lloyd, says Mellor – who lives in Davis but plans to retire in P.G. – removed her tenant and spent more than $15,000 upgrading both units.

But in January, according to City Attorney David Laredo, officials told Mellor her permit is invalid because it doesn’t comply with the zoning code. “Frankly, it doesn’t matter what piece of paper somebody has,” Laredo says.

So Mellor isn’t using the property at all, and Silkwood says it’s costing her $10,000-$15,000 a month in lost revenue.

Feske stopped working for the city in January. Frutchey and Laredo won’t comment on his departure, and Feske could not be reached.

Frutchey says the permits should have been handled higher up the chain of authority, and officials have contacted the affected homeowners.

The bigger context is the city’s short-term rental ordinance, adopted in early 2010. On July 16, the City Council amended the ordinance to let property owners rent out either their primary or secondary units, but not both. The change could affect 39 properties.

Silkwood spoke on behalf of her client, asking the council to strike language requiring owner occupancy of one unit. The council declined to do so.

The concern is that absentee landlords leasing out both units are less able to control their tenants, which could affect the character of communities zoned for single-family homes. “We continue to have some people who over-rent their facilities, which causes a disruption of the neighborhood,” Frutchey says.

P.G. Mayor Bill Kampe says city planners have lacked leadership since former Community Development Department Director Mike Zimmer retired in early December. Mark Brodeur, former assistant director of planning for the city of San Antonio, has been hired to replace Zimmer Aug. 18.