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The owner of a world-famous Airbnb with a 25-foot shark sticking out of the roof has hit out at a local decision to enforce its closure.
UK resident Dr. Magnus Hanson-Heine has lost a planning appeal from Oxford Council to ban the use of short-let accommodation for the quirky property known as the Shark House.
He claimed he had not received a single complaint from neighbors and was being targeted by the council as a “test case” to shut down AirBnbs in the city.
And he has now urged visitors to “come while you can” and vowed to continue for “as long as we can.”
Hanson-Heine’s father, Bill Heine, had initially constructed the sculpture without official planning permission from Oxford City Council in 1986.
For the last five years, he has been letting the property out on Airbnb for short-term stays — but received notice from the council to shut it down after a member of the public complained about the change from residential use to a short-term let.
Hanson-Heine has now been informed that he must stop using the property as a short-term let by March 11, 2025 — a move which he believes will hurt Oxford’s tourism industry overall.
“The Shark House is a major tourist attraction, not just a regular family home. It’s been a delight to be able to open it up to members of the public to celebrate it with us, and I will continue to do so for as long as I can,” he said.
“I’ve yet to hear any complaints from our neighbors, even during the planning appeal, and the inspector found no such harm in his decision,” he continued, while also noting he had “mostly had five-star reviews” from guests to his property.
“Certain elements of the council have just 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.
“This does nothing meaningful to help people looking for homes, and after March all they will have done is to rob people who want to experience this piece of Oxford’s history from the inside.
“Oxford’s tourism and accommodation sector will be significantly poorer for it.”
Hanson-Heine called the inspector’s decision “unfortunate” and suggested that “advertising on platforms such as Airbnb doesn’t necessarily constitute a change of use” under current guidelines.
“People renting and sleeping in a home is the proper use of a home, and C3 class includes a wide range of uses, including many work-from-home businesses People shouldn’t simply comply with bureaucrats looking to make up and prosecute their own interpretations of the law by threatening people,” he said.
“These are people’s homes and livelihoods, and if the council wants to control who can stay in them, then they should go and buy their own.”
He also slammed politicians who use “their existing failures as an excuse to grab for yet more personal power.” He called the move “a disgrace,” adding that short-term rentals “aren’t the cause of the housing crisis.”
“I suppose my message would be ‘Come while you still can,’” he added.
Two years after it was originally built, Oxford City Council refused retrospective planning permission before the then-Secretary of State for the Environment Michael Heseltine intervened to allow it to stay.
Bill Heine died in 2019 at age 74, and his son Hanson-Heine reignited his late dad’s battle with the authorities when he protested against it being added to a list of cultural assets.
In the latest fight, Hanson-Heine appealed the “change of use” decision with the National Planning Inspectorate and said it would remain open to visitors until he was forced to close.
Over the years the property has also become a tourist attraction in Oxford with visitors coming to see the “Jaws”-like creature crashing head-first through the roof.
It also has secured rave reviews from guests with a 4.86 rating.
The listing states the house can sleep up to 10 people with prices for a two-night stay as much as $2,537.
“Where properties have changed from being residential homes to becoming short-let businesses without planning approval, we do take enforcement action,” weighed in Councillor Linda Smith, Oxford City Council’s cabinet member for housing.
“We live in one the least affordable places for housing in the UK. There are nearly 800 properties let out entirely as short lets in Oxford, and we need those for people to live in and not as holiday accommodation.”
Hanson-Heine previously spoke of his fears that having the home added to a Heritage Asset Register was “a stepping stone” towards getting it listed — meaning more planning controls
The inclusion of a building or place on the register does not place any additional legal requirements on owners.
But Hanson-Heine said he was adamant he did not want it added to Oxford City Council’s list of important pieces of heritage.
“My father always resisted giving any conclusive answer to the question what was the meaning of it,” he said. “It was designed to make people think for themselves, and decide for themselves what is art.
“But it was anti-censorship in the form of planning laws specifically.”
