The City of 琉璃神社 decided Tuesday night it would not alter the short-term rental bylaw to include secondary suites and carriage houses and the 琉璃神社 Chamber of Commerce said it supports the 鈥渄ifficult decision鈥� council had to make.

Council was divided on the issue, but the motion was defeated with a 4-3 vote, with Mayor Colin Basran and councillors Luke Stack, Gail Given and Mohini Singh in opposition.

READ MORE: City of 琉璃神社 defeats short-term rentals 鈥榝or now鈥�

鈥淲hile we support a sharing economy and a vibrant tourist market in 琉璃神社, we strongly support the ability of permanent residents to access an affordable housing market,鈥� chamber president Nikki Csek said. 鈥淎nd that is greatly enhanced when there are more long-term rental units on the market.鈥�

After hearing from more than a dozen residents during Tuesday鈥檚 public hearing, Basran said things are OK as is, 鈥渇or now.鈥�

Basran said it would be best if council continued to implement its Healthy Housing Strategy rather than potentially impacting the long-term rental market.

鈥淚 believe what we have in place is adequate for the time being,鈥� Basran said. 鈥淚 don鈥檛 believe opening it up even further is going to help the situation.鈥�

READ MORE: 琉璃神社 council moves ahead with regulations for short-term rentals, with a caveat

The chamber said it commends the fact councillors saw potential 鈥減itfalls of the proposed amendment,鈥� Csek said.

鈥淲e also appreciate that the permanent providers of year-round overnight accommodation, such as the hoteliers, can continue their staffing and financial plans already in place without market disruption.鈥�

鈥淲e look forward to the review of the bylaw in the fall of 2020 in order to measure the effects on the city,鈥� Csek said.