MILWAUKEE — Milwaukee residents who have been turned away by specific hotels barring them from renting rooms will no longer have to worry about the matter within city limits.
The Milwaukee Common Council voted unanimously to bar city hotels from using the 30-mile radius rule, which kept Milwaukee residents from renting rooms.
“We removed that ban. It is illegal for you to have a geographic location,” Alderwoman Chantia Lewis said.
A ban for a ban, as the policy went under the microscope after several hotels were called out for using the policy. One of those locations was the Comfort Inn & Suites on Park Place near Good Hope Road.
“I was personally turned away,” Lewis said. “I was like, ‘ Wait, is this a thing?’"
Ironically, Lewis needed a room with her family.
"We had an outage and it was during the summer I believe, and I said, 'Let's go to the hotel because we couldn't get an electrician until the next morning,'" Lewis recalled.
The Comfort Inn & Suites declined to comment on the ordinance change.
TODAY’S TMJ4 reached out to the Greater Milwaukee Hotel & Lodging Association which released this statement:
"We are not aware of any state or national prohibition on geographical restrictions for the rental of lodging. All lodging property owners, independent hotel operators, and brands make these determinations individually and in compliance with the law."
If hotels do not comply with the new ordinance, they are at risk of losing their license.
