The Boulder City Council unanimously approved an ordinance this week allowing tenants to sublease their homes during the Sundance Film Festival. The city is expected to begin issuing licenses in early May.
The new license will expand a short-term rental program that previously only allowed property owners to participate. The 11-day festival, scheduled for Jan. 21-31, 2027, is expected to draw tens of thousands of visitors to Boulder. That’s far more than the city’s hotel rooms can accommodate.
City officials and councilmembers hope the new tenant option will boost the availability of lodging ahead of the event.
Under the newly approved ordinance, tenants can obtain a rental license to sublease their homes during the festival period, as long as they get written permission from the property owner. Tenants and property owners can negotiate financial arrangements, likely as part of the lease agreement. This could include a revenue split, rent offset or another structure.
The ordinance was backed by Jill Grano, a former Boulder City Councilmember and Gov. Jared Polis’s statewide housing manager for the Sundance festival relocation. Grano had argued that roughly every 200 units unlocked is the equivalent of adding a new hotel to the city, and said the new ordinance is more equitable because it allows renters to benefit from the festival license.
“There is an important equity component in allowing tenants to sublease, should the owner allow, and not just making this opportunity only for owners for their vacant spaces,” Grano said during a public hearing Thursday.
Last year, the Boulder City Council approved a short-term festival rental license intended to free up more accommodations for the event. City officials said the city has received about 225 applications.
Under that ordinance, property owners must choose between a short-term or long-term rental. They cannot do both. This raised concerns that some owners would opt for the short-term license and leave their homes empty for the rest of the year. Several properties are already listed on Airbnb for more than $100,000 for the 11-day festival.
Supporters argue the tenant provision addresses those concerns by giving property owners more flexibility without pulling units from the long-term rental market. The Boulder City Council and a group of residents are also considering a ballot measure that would impose a tax on property owners who leave their homes vacant for most of the year, with certain exceptions.
Councilmember Ryan Schuchard said he had some concerns over the liability for renters in the event a unit is damaged. He said he would like the city to provide guidance to renters to help protect their interests.
“What we are producing now is a framework that takes the role of the renter and the landlord beyond one of a tenant and landlord to being business partners in a commercial enterprise,” Schuchard said. “And I am concerned that if things don’t go well in that partnership then there is probably a structural bias towards the landlord.”
The application fee for the tenant license was set at $75, lower than the $190 charged for the owner-held version. Tenant licenses will be valid for one year, compared to four years for property owners. Both are capped at no more than 29 days per year.
The ordinance does not set terms for how the property owners and the tenants split rental revenue. Councilmember Taishya Adams, the only renter on the council, said she had significant concerns about how revenue would be split.
“I can see there being some tomfoolery here,” Adams said. “I would feel much better if there were some kind of reporting.”
Grano said Airbnb will track that data, and she expects property owners will seek to keep between 10% and 25% of the rental revenue. But Adams said she preferred the city collect it.
In 2025, the festival drew 85,000 in-person attendees in Park City, Utah. Boulder’s hotel capacity is roughly 2,900 rooms, according to city officials.
To secure the festival’s move, Boulder and partner groups committed $34 million in incentives over the next decade. The city has also approved an incentive package related to leasing spaces, permitting, parking and transportation services. The festival rental license is the first major policy change related to the event.
Nathan Rothman, Airbnb’s North America policy director, said the new rules will ensure Boulder is ready to host the festival and gives “everyday residents a direct way to economically benefit from this influx of visitors.”
“We stand ready to support the Boulder community as it gets ready for this exciting moment and encourage other leaders in the region to adopt a similar approach,” Rothman said.
Update: This story was updated on April 3 with a quote from Nathan Rothman, Airbnb’s North America policy director.
John, you should ask boulder about turn around times on the approvals.
I sent a “short term rental” request form (properly filled out) into Boulder. They said 2 weeks I would hear back. Monday will be 4 weeks.
They claim lack of staffing is slowing them down. I have NO ETA on my festival rental request form.