>Is there a difference in impact between a) one apartment dweller renting on AirBnB, and b) a 100-unit motel that charges by the hour? Of course there is. Perhaps the laws will evolve to reflect that. But for now, it's reasonable for long-term residents to be concerned about the latter situation developing if AirBnB is subject to no regulation at all.

The problem is scale. 1 apartment getting rented on AirBnB probably isn't a problem for anyone at all. But if it's 1%? That's a significant reduction in available housing. Given that NYC already has a gigantic housing and real estate problem, anything that can conceivably compound the issue will get attention.