Twilight Zoning in Bellingham: August 2012

Thursday, August 2, 2012

WWU Students Call (Yet Again) for Rental Inspections

The Associated Students of Western Washington University (A/S) has just sent a letter to Mayor Linville voicing the concerns of students over the dangers posed by substandard and dangerous rental housing in Bellingham and the lack of a program of regular inspections of all rentals. The letter was signed by Patrick Stickney, the A/S Vice President for Governmental Affairs and the A/S President Ethan Glemaker. The press release on the letter stated:

“Students make Bellingham their home for four or more years, and they should not have to deal with conditions which affect their quality of life in order to obtain an education”, said Stickney. “Students also don’t know their rights as tenants or get labeled as ‘high-maintenance tenants’ if they try to exert them. This issue doesn’t just affect students, but all residents of Bellingham who live in rental houses.”

The letter referenced a survey of renters conducted in 2011 that demonstrated that a surprising percentage of rental homes in the city have life threatening conditions related to electrical and plumbing systems, mold, structural problems, filth and vermin. Over two years ago, the Associated Students passed a resolution on the topic of rental inspections and asked that the city take action. The students are still waiting. There are some 8,000 to 10,000 student renters in the city whose 18,000 rental units remain utterly uncontrolled. These young renters are well aware of the dangers of substandard housing as they are, for all intents and purposes, forced to live in some of the worst year after year for lack of choice.

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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.