Homeowners who rent only a portion of their home as a vacation rental will face stiffer rules as the city of Whitefish considers changes to city regulations for short-term rentals.

The proposed changes are the focus of a public hearing before the Whitefish Planning Board when it meets at 6 p.m. Thursday at Whitefish City Hall.

An updated definition will require the rental of a bedroom within a home for less than 30 days as a short-term rental subject to the full application process. Previously the definition required the entire dwelling being rented to be considered a short-term rental, according to a planning staff report.

Whitefish developed short-term rental standards in 2013 to mitigate the impact on adjacent long-term residents and provide tools to aid in the enforcement of illegal short-term rentals. The city allows short-term rentals only in certain resort and commercial zoning districts.

The city staff, at the direction of the City Council, is updating processes for permitting and enforcement, along with an updated definition of a short-term rental.

A short-term rental permit now will be required for each unit. Previously, if a property manager managed more than one unit, the city did not require a permit for each unit, just for the property manager, according to the staff report.

The proposed changes tighten the language for contact information, requiring an emergency contact notice with the owner’s name and phone number (or local contact person) to be posted and visible from outside the front door.

Other changes include:

- The city now will have a joint short-term rental permit and a business license.

- A fire marshal inspection will occur once an application is submitted and completed. In the past, applicants were scheduling inspections with the fire marshal before the Planning Office ensured the rental was in the proper zone.

- The Flathead City-County Health Department won’t issue a tourist home permit until the city has approved the land use.