Airbnb’s listing for 8 Curtis Lake Rd. indicates that it rents for almost $3,000 a night in August. (Screenshot)
By Zendelle Bouchard
The Sanford City Council voted 6-0 to authorize legal action against the owner of the house at 8 Curtis Lake Rd., which has been the subject of complaints by neighbors. The waterfront home is advertised as a short-term rental property on sites including Airbnb and Vrbo.
Sanford Code Enforcement officer Aaron Lederer issued a notice of violation (NOV) in April 2025, citing multiple violations of the city’s rental housing ordinance. When no response was received from the owner, a second NOV was issued in December 2025.
Violations cited in the most recent NOV include the following paragraphs from the section of the ordinance devoted to short-term rentals:
- A. A short-term rental in the Urban Zone, Single-Family Residential Zone, and Residential Development Zone, must be the primary residence, as defined in § 280, of the property owner. The house is in the Residential Development zone and the owner does not live onsite.
- C. The occupancy limit for a short-term rental is based on a calculation of two adults per bedroom. The home is listed on Airbnb as having eight bedrooms and four baths, and as being suitable for up to 22 guests, but the city’s property tax records list it as having only five bedrooms, which would limit it to 10 adults.
- F. No property owner shall have an entitlement or vested right to continue to operate a short-term rental that does not meet the standards required in this section after 2023. In other words, being operated as a short-term rental prior to the passage of this ordinance doesn’t grandfather the property.
Jeff Kitchen, who lives next door to the property, spoke at the City Council’s March 17 meeting about ongoing issues with noise and other problems, and said, “It’s not a home, it’s a hotel.” He contacted the listing websites and was told that if it violated city ordinances, they would remove the listing, but when Lederer forwarded the NOV to Airbnb, he received a letter in response indicating that the only action the company would take is notifying the owner.
The Curtis Lake property was purchased by Alexander J. MacKenzie Jr. in October 2021 and transferred to a realty trust two months later. The mailing address on the tax card is 375 Silver St., Boston, a single-family home in the city’s South Boston neighborhood.
The city will pursue legal action under Rule 80K of the Maine Rules of Civil Procedure, which provides a simpler, speedier and less costly procedure for the prosecution of land use violations. Under Rule 80K, the District Court can order violators to pay fines and to stop or correct a violation.
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