CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Residents said an Airbnb in their neighborhood has been a nuisance after parties are held there every weekend, leaving trash behind and destroying yards.
“It’s been a nightmare,” said Melissa Paradis, who lives in the northwest Charlotte neighborhood.
She said the owner started renting out the house in September.
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“Immediately, the parties started on Friday and Saturday nights,” Paradis said.
She said she has seen up to 100 vehicles parked on the road during some weekends.
“The cars were blocking both ways, and I got halfway down to my house and couldn’t go any further,” Paradis said.
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The Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department has responded to the short-term rental, she said.
“They’ve probably have been called 15 or 16 times,” Paradis said.
In a cellphone video, officers could be seen directing traffic out of the neighborhood.
“It took police over an hour to clear the street,” she said.
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The partiers will sometimes run through yards to escape the police, she said. Traffic isn’t the only problem neighbors are experiencing.
“Trash, cases of empty beer cases, there’s beer bottles, liquor bottles,” Paradis said.
[ALSO READ: Police urge owners of short-term rentals, like Airbnb, to register]
The house is under a 60-day suspension because of the complaints, an Airbnb spokesperson said. However, the same home is on other short-term rental sites.
“It’s dangerous and it seems there’s no one responsible, and no one seems to care,” Paradis said.
She is worried one of the parties could get out of control.
“We have obviously seen the stuff in California and even Charlotte where people have been killed,” Paradis said.
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