The owner of a world-famous Airbnb that has a 25-foot shark clinging to its ceiling has hit out at a local decision to close it down.
UK resident Dr Magnus Hanson-Hein has lost planning appeal to Oxford Council to ban the use of short-let accommodation Unique property known as Shark House,
He claimed he has not received a single complaint from neighbors and that he is being targeted by the council as a “test case” to shut down Airbnbs in the city.
And they have now urged visitors to “come while you can” and have vowed to keep visiting “as long as we can”.
Hanson-Heine’s father, Bill Heine, initially created the sculpture in 1986 without official planning permission from Oxford City Council.
For the past five years, he has been renting out his property on Airbnb for short-term stays – but he received a notice from the council to close it down after a member of the public complained about the change from residential use to short-term letting. found. ,
Hanson-Hein has now been informed that they must stop using the property as a short-term lease by March 11, 2025 – a move they believe will damage Oxford’s tourism industry. There will be overall loss.
“Shark House is a major tourist attraction, not just a regular family home. “It has been a pleasure to open it up to members of the public to celebrate with us and I will continue to do so for as long as we can,” he said.
“I have yet to receive any complaints from my neighbours, even during the planning appeal, and the inspector found no such harm in his decision,” he added, adding that Said they had received “mostly five-star reviews” from guests. his property.
“Some elements of the council have used this as an excuse to score some cheap political points by going after a local landmark at the expense of the public,” he said.
“It does nothing meaningful to help people looking for homes, and after March all they will have done is rob people who want to experience this part of Oxford’s history from the inside.
“Oxford’s tourism and accommodation sector will be much the poorer for it.”
Hanson-Heine described the inspectorate’s decision as “unfortunate” and suggested that “advertising on platforms like Airbnb does not necessarily constitute a change in use” under existing guidelines.
“People rent a home and sleep in it, that’s a reasonable use of the home, and the C3 class covers a wide range of uses, including many work-from-home businesses. People don’t just have to use those bureaus.” The law is being interpreted to intimidate people who want to sue for their own non-compliance,” he said.
“These are people’s homes and livelihoods, and if the council wants to control who can live in them, then they should go and buy their own homes.”
He also criticized politicians who “use their existing failures as an excuse to gain even more personal power.” He described the move as “outrageous” and said short-term rentals “are not the cause of the housing crisis.”
He added, “I think my message would be ‘Come while you can.’
Originally two years after its construction, Oxford City Council refused retrospective planning permission, before the then Environment Secretary Michael Heseltine intervened to allow it to remain.
Bill Heine died in 2019 at the age of 74, and his son Hanson-Heine rekindled his late father’s battle with the authorities when he opposed it being added to the list of cultural properties.
In the latest battle, Hanson-Hein appealed a “change of use” decision with the National Planning Inspectorate and said it would remain open to visitors until it was forced to close.
Over the years the property has become a tourist attraction in Oxford with visitors coming to see the “Jaws”-like creature hitting the roof.
It has also received good reviews from guests with a rating of 4.86.
The listing says the home can sleep up to 10 people and costs $2,537 for a two-night stay.
Councilor Linda Smith, Oxford City Council’s cabinet member for housing, said: “Where properties have changed from residential homes to short-let businesses without planning approval, we take enforcement action.”
“We live in one of the least affordable places to live in the UK. “There are around 800 properties in Oxford fully let out as short lets, and we need them for people to live in, not as holiday accommodation.”
Hanson-Hein has previously spoken about her fear that adding the house to the Heritage Asset Register was “a step” towards listing it – meaning more planning controls.
Including a building or place on the register does not impose any additional legal requirements on the owners.
But Hanson-Hein said he was adamant that he did not want it added to Oxford City Council’s list of important pieces of heritage.
“My father always avoided giving any conclusive answer to the question of what it meant,” he said. “It was designed to make people think for themselves and decide for themselves what art is.
“But it was specifically anti-censorship in the form of planning laws.”
