In the early morning on Feb. 26, neighbors of the Oakwood Glen Neighborhood on Cannes Dr. took cover after hearing gunfire in the street. A short-term rental is now at the head of an investigation that led to a stray bullet entering a child’s playroom.
According to NBCDFW, homeowners in the area said a fight broke out at a short-term rental on the block that turned into gunfire.
"I heard like 'bang, bang, bang, bang, bang.' I woke up and I said, ‘I think our house is being shot at,' said neighborhood resident Zoey Sanchez.
Sanchez told NBC she and her husband were asleep in their daughter's bedroom toward the back of the house when the shots occurred. But they later entered the child’s playroom and found a bullet hole in the blinds of the window. No one was harmed.
"There’s a bullet hole and not only that, there’s a bullet hole above the mirror and play kitchen, and it goes through that wall, hits a window on the other side and ricocheted off of one of my concert posters," Sanchez said. The couple later found the bullet in their cat’s litter box.
Plano police confirmed they responded to the neighborhood after the reports of gunfire. They arrested a 24-year-old man from Fort Worth for evading detention and possessing marijuana over 4 ounces and under five pounds. An 18-year-old female was also arrested for interfering with the public duties of a peace officer.
The gunfire is still under investigation and police have not released information about the alleged shooter.
But this incident is not the only one that is pushing residents to fight against short-term rentals in the city. On Sept. 23, 2022, Dallas police busted a Plano short-term rental for allegedly housing a brothel. Police later arrested over 20 individuals for their involvement in sex trafficking.
Plano City Council was set to vote on the restrictions of short-term rentals twice, but both votes were postponed. Council said more information was presented and they needed to review it before a vote could occur.
But in Nov. 2022 information was discovered that a real estate advocacy group that supports the owners of the rentals donated campaign contributions to all city council members. The city council did not respond to Local Profile when asked about the contributions.
A vote from the council is still on hold, but council members are looking at Arlington’s plan for guidance. Plano is expected to follow a similar model in terms of rules for short-term rentals.
