Twilight Zoning in Bellingham: City Council

Friday, September 28, 2007

City Council - Resolute or in Disrepute?

We have come to learn the following which was posted on the City Council’s web page (click here):

CITY OF BELLINGHAM CITY COUNCIL FOLLOW UP FOR AGENDA

September 24, 2007

3. OLD/NEW BUSINESS

Council Member Bornemann reported that landlord accountability issues will be discussed at the October 8, 2007 meeting.

What are we to think of this development? Frankly, we are puzzled. Perhaps the council is putting the proverbial cart before the proverbial horse. Although it is gratifying to see that the council, albeit somewhat dimly, is awakening to the problems that have been for years all too obvious to the single family homeowners, we cannot imagine the reason for which the council is looking for accountability from the landlords when it has not, as yet, asked for accountability from the Mayor and the Director of Planning. Some time past, the council voted into law Bellingham Municipal Code (20.08.020), a portion of which defines that which constitutes a single family for the purposes of further defining zoning relating to single family neighborhoods. From the information we have been able to gather, the city executives have all but ignored this portion of the code thus allowing the creation of uncontrolled, unregulated and unlicensed rooming houses throughout the city. It seems to us that the council may wish to produce a resolution expressing their indignation with respect to the inactivity of the city executives in enforcing a code that they, the council, deemed acceptable [vere dignum et justum est] and passed into law. At such time, the council could then turn in high dudgeon, with a straight face and with resolution held high, to call the landlords accountable.

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The Rationale for Rental Licensing

There is the definitive experience of cities that have already adopted rental licensing and inspections in the face of exactly the same opposition as we saw in Bellingham over the last decade. Ultimately, each of these cities was proven correct in its resolve to move ahead to protect the safety and health of the renters. We already know that the city of Pasco, WA found that 15% of the units inspected under their program had serious life/safety issues. 10% had mold problems. A full 85% had problems of varying degrees. The city of Gresham, OR performed over 1600 inspections in 2009 and issued, as a result, over 4,000 citations. Lexington, KY performed inspections of units near the University of Kentucky and found that 50% had life/safety issues. Sacramento, CA began an inspection program during which one third of the units inspected had serious safety and health issues. The question why does anyone believe that the condition of rental housing here in Bellingham does not mirror that which is found in cities that have the statistics to show that time and time again the condition of rentals in our cities is problematic? All we have had to date from those who oppose licensing are broad statements by the landlords and their paladins that are completely and utterly unsubstantiated. The Zonemaven has searched in vain for the horror stories that these opponents of licensing and inspections have predicted. On the other hand, The Zonemaven did find over 100 cities that have licensing AND inspections without the catastrophic effect for the rental markets that the landlords would have you believe. (See this blog's sidebar at bottom left for list)

One Reason Illegal Rooming Houses Do Not Work

The limit for unrelated persons at a single family home rental is three residents. Leases are signed by three people who then invite additional renters to join them to lower per capita rental rates. The perverse effect is that rental rates tend to rise under these circumstances making it difficult for single families to rent single family homes. Some local rental agencies facilitate this practice.

"To say that a family is so equivalent to a ragtag collection of college roommates as to require identical treatment in zoning decisions defies the reality of the place of the family in American society, despite any changes that institution has undergone in recent years. Only the most cynical among us would say that the American family has devolved to the point of no greater importance or consideration in governmental decision making than a group of college roommates." (Stegeman v. City of Ann Arbor)

That being said, accommodation ought to be made for protected classes, especially non-traditional unions and group houses for the disabled. These classes are laid out in federal and Washington State law.