Yang v. Voyagaire Houseboats8/4/2005
is the type generally thought suitable for public regulation." Schlobohm, 326 N.W.2d at 925. "Types of services thought to be subject to public regulation have included common carriers, hospitals and doctors, public utilities, innkeepers, public warehousemen, employers and services involving extra-hazardous activities." Id. (footnotes omitted). In contrast, courts generally have held that contracts relating to recreational activities "do not fall within any of the categories where the public interest is involved." Id. at 925-26 (citations omitted).
Xiong asserts that the exculpatory clause in the houseboat rental agreement is not enforceable because "Voyagaire essentially functions as an 'innkeeper'" by providing sleeping accommodations to the public. See Minn. Stat. § 327.70, subds. 3-4 (2004) (defining an "innkeeper" as "an owner or operator" of a "hotel, motel, resort, boarding house, bed and breakfast, furnished apartment house or other building, which is kept, used or advertised as, or held out to the public to be, a place where sleeping or housekeeping accommodations are supplied for pay to guests for transient occupancy"). Xiong further asserts that "houseboat rental is subject to public regulation as a resort," and references Minn. Stat. § 157.15, subd. 11 (2004), which states:
"Resort" means a building, structure, enclosure, or any part thereof located on, or on property neighboring, any lake, stream, skiing or hunting area, or any recreational area for purposes of providing convenient access thereto, kept, used, maintained, or advertised as, or held out to the public to be a place where sleeping accommodations are furnished to the public, and primarily to those seeking recreation for periods of one day, one week, or longer, and having for rent five or more cottages, rooms, or enclosures.
See also Minn. Stat. §§ 157.011-.22 (2004) (addressing the licensing and regulation of food, beverage, and lodging establishments, including resorts); Minn. R. 4625.0100-.2355 (2005) (establishing standards for lodging establishments, including hotels, motels, and resorts).
Voyagaire, on the other hand, argues that the exculpatory clause is enforceable because renting houseboats "is a purely recreational activity" and is not a necessary or public service. Although Voyagaire acknowledges that it "may be considered an innkeeper in its capacity as a hotel and lodge," Voyagaire contends that its rental of houseboats is separate from its functions as a resort. As the court of appeals noted, the statutory definition of resort "does not mention houseboats," see Minn. Stat. § 157.15, subd. 11, and a "houseboat" is defined elsewhere in Minnesota Statutes as a "motorboat," see Minn. Stat. § 103G.245, subd. 4(2) (2004). Yang, 2004 WL 2049843, at *3.
We disagree with Voyagaire's characterization of the houseboats as merely "recreational equipment." Voyagaire's own website describes the houseboats as "floating homes." Although not anchored to the ground, the houseboat that Xiong rented has five double beds, a penthouse bedroom, a kitchen area, a toilet, and shower. See also Minn. Stat. § 103G.245, subd. 4(2) (defining a "houseboat" for purposes of public waters work permits as a motorboat that has "a permanent enclosed superstructure housing, at a minimum, built-in sleeping, cooking, and toilet facilities").
By offering houseboats for daily and weekly rental on Crane Lake, Voyagaire was furnishing sleeping accommodations to members of the public seeking recreation. These constitute resort functions. See Minn. Stat. § 157.15, subd. 11 (defining "resort"). Consequently, we conclude that the services offered by Voyagaire--including the rental of houseboats--qualif
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