Airbnb calls on former mayors for advice

The global accommodation-sharing site, Airbnb, has formed a new advisory board to be headed up by four former mayors to better work with city officials.

The Mayoral Advisory Board will meet on a quarterly basis and be chaired by Michael Nutter, the former mayor of Philadelphia. Alongside him will sit the former mayors of Rome, Houston and Adelaide.

“I know firsthand the tremendous economic impact of empowering everyday people to turn their greatest expense–their housing–into an economic opportunity. I am looking forward to working with Airbnb to help other cities embrace home sharing,” said Nutter.

The new board follows on from Airbnb’s launch last year of its Community Compact, a commitment based on the lessons the company has learned on how to best partner with cities. These include commitments to ensuring hotel and tourist taxes are paid, being transparent with cities, and preventing short-term rentals from impacting the availability of long-term housing.

In a statement the company says it has so far collected and remitted US$85 million in hotel and tourist taxes in 190 cities, states, or other taxing jurisdictions around the world.

Last month Airbnb sponsored the US Conference of Mayors Summer meeting in Indianapolis and made a pitch to the gathered mayors about the benefits the service can bring to cities.

The former mayor of Adelaide, Stephen Yarwood, the youngest mayor of any major Australian city is himself an Airbnb host.

“I’m delighted to be part of a movement that will influence how cities transform their operating system in the 21st century,” he said. “Technology is changing how communities connect and Airbnb is at the forefront of positive change and empowerment.”