Norwich — Regulate short-term rentals and make sure they have off-street parking. Restrict livestock to larger residential lots. Reopen the YMCA.

Those were a few of the hand-scrawled messages written on brightly-colored sticky notes posted by participants onto poster-sized sheets asking for comments on the specific issues listed during an open forum on city zoning issues Wednesday. City Planning Director Deanna Rhodes scheduled the session to hear directly and informally from residents and business owners before her department proposes changes to zoning regulations and city zoning maps in the coming months.

More than two dozen city residents, business owners, city officials and candidates in the fall election participated in the open discussion session at the Foundry 66 shared workspace facility run by the Norwich Community Development Corp.

Short-term rentals, such as Airbnb, and whether livestock should be allowed in residential zones attracted strong attention, along with an open-ended question on what other ideas and suggestions participants wanted city planners to consider.

“Prohibit events in other than (General Commercial) zone,” someone wrote on the short-term rental board.

“Airbnb is a new digital way of doing things,” someone wrote. “My grandmother used to do them. She had a spare room. Maybe regulate prop.?”

Others wrote that Norwich should embrace short-term rentals to attract visitors to the city and to “show off” the city’s historical buildings and character. The extra income also provides owners of large historical houses the ability to invest in their properties and keep them in good condition.

Opinions also were mixed on livestock: “Allow animals minimum 2 acres,” one suggested. “How would noise and smell be controlled?” another asked. “Everybody should have chickens,” another said.

Robert Bell, a local property manager and City Council candidate, said he operates two properties as short-term rentals in Norwich, one a single-family home and the other a two-family home with two three-bedroom units. He said both are near downtown, and he provides his guests with a list of local options for eating, shopping and attractions. Bell said most come to go to the region’s two casinos, but often explore downtown and local historic sites.

Bell said he has off-street parking at one property and is building a driveway at the second site.

He said he has paid $6,300 in state room occupancy taxes from Jan. 1 through Tuesday. The fees are processed through the rental reservation smartphone app or internet rental service and paid directly to the state.

The city does not receive hotel or short-term room occupancy tax revenues. Zoning Enforcement Officer Richard Shuck said he gets frequent complaints about short-term rental activities in residential neighborhoods. He said he believes the facilities should be regulated.

Rhodes said her staff will review all the comments posted Wednesday and try to come up with proposed zoning regulation changes that incorporate some of the ideas. Another public session will be held at the end of November.

“We’ll talk about the ideas that came up tonight,” Rhodes said, “balance the suggestions we got and seek guidance elsewhere to come up with comprehensive regulations.”

c.bessette@theday.com