Mayor Pat Taylor and the Highlands, NC Town Council are attempting to ban or drastically reduce short-term rentals in Highlands. This includes all residential zones inside the town limits (R-1, R-2, and R-3). We need your help in fighting for our property rights and in protecting our local shops, restaurants, and small businesses that rely on tourism income, and the locals that rely on our 400+ short term rentals for their income. Whether you’re a local business, short term rental owner, or a vacationer, we all love Highlands. Let’s join forces to protect this place that we all know and love. It deserves to be shared.
-
We’re undergoing an impressive fundraising effort via our GoFundMe page but we need more contributions. Join the fight to Save Highlands- we still have a long way to go. *Anonymous Donations Accepted.
-
Please join our email list if you’d like to stay abreast of any current happenings and more. Our goal is to keep our business owners and STR owners informed.
-
Connect with other STR owners and business owners within the Highlands community. It is imperative to remember that there is strength in numbers and there are a lot of voices in the fight to Save Highlands.
A Little More Background…
Mayor Pat Taylor and the Highlands, NC Town Council are attempting to ban our short-term rentals, effective January 3, 2022. We have received notice that this effects all properties zoned R-1, R-2, and R-3. This will have significant ramifications not just on the STR owners and property managers, but on the local shops, restaurants, and grocers, and all businesses that rely on tourism.
The town conducted no economic impact study to amass the detrimental economic fallout this will have to Highlands, to Macon County, and to our locals who rely heavily on over 400 STR’s to put food on the table. We are fighting for the people who will lose jobs and the property managers who will lose companies. We are fighting for the businesses who have come to rely on tourism as a means to survive. We are fighting for those whose retirement plans counted on this revenue and for those who spent their life savings. It is also about the older owners whose sole income is their rental revenue. The foreclosures, the decline in property values, and the lost tax revenue will be devastating.
Where Are We Now And What We Need From You…
We’ve formed a committee to “Save Highlands.” The core group spearheading this effort is made up of STR owners and local business advocates who love our slice of heaven. We want to keep it thriving and keep our local workers employed. We are in contact with many advocacy groups to aid in protecting the property rights of our owners.
An impressive fundraising effort is underway via our GoFundMe thanks to our local businesses and owner contributions but we still have a long way to go and WE NEED YOUR HELP. The contributions are paying the legal fees in the prosecution of the litigation. We have retained the Asheville-based law firm Allen Stahl + Kilborne, with Derek Allen serving as lead counsel, aided by an impressive group of litigation attorneys and advisors.
Please support our efforts to raise as much money as we can to fight back against this injustice that effects so many. For STR owners, a suggested donation amount of $1,000 is requested. For businesses, and all other supporters, as much as you can give will be needed and much appreciated.
In the event that not all the contributions are needed, we are keeping any balance of funds in the account that will be set up for our LLC, in case the town tries to ban again. After a period of time, we will donate the funds to a local nonprofit organization in Highlands.