Puyallup passes regulations for transitional and emergency housing. Here’s what to know

Housing providers in Puyallup for those in need have new regulations they must follow.

The Puyallup City Council passed ordinances during a council meeting Tuesday night that will create a license program for permanent supportive and transitional housing and will re-zone emergency housing and shelters.

The first ordinance will create a business license program for scattered site units, permanent supportive housing and transitional housing. Council members Robin Farris, Jim Kastama, Dennis King, Deputy Mayor Ned Witting and Mayor Dean Johnson approved the business license program. Council members John Palmer and Julie Door rejected it.

The second ordinance modifies where permanent supportive housing, transitional housing, emergency housing and emergency shelters can be zoned. This allows most of these types of housing in residential, commercial, medical and mixed-use zones. It passed unanimously.

The city’s zoning code before the vote “does not define or regulate permanent supportive housing or transitional housing as distinct land uses,” according to an ordinance presented during the council meeting.

Discussed since 2021

House Bill 1220 requires cities to allow permanent supportive housing, transitional housing and emergency shelters in more areas. It also requires cities to regulate those types of housing consistent with the bill. The state Legislature passed it in 2021. The City Council has been publicly discussing ways to comply with HB 1220 during council meetings since that summer.

Permanent supportive housing, as defined in the city’s second ordinance, is subsidized and leased housing where people can stay indefinitely.

“Permanent supportive housing is paired with on-site or off-site voluntary services designed to support a person living with a complex and disabling behavioral health or physical health condition,” the ordinance says in part.

Transitional housing offers a home and support services such as job training an financial planning classes to unhoused individuals or families for up to two years, helping them transition to independent living.

Scattered site units are single- or two-family dwelling units, or a dwelling unit leased from a multi-family building or facility that isn’t designated as emergency housing or shelter. It can be transitional housing or permanent supportive housing.

“The reason why we added definitions for scattered site and congregate was to distinguish that there is a difference, due to the configuration, between single household units with a single family versus large, dormitory-style facilities which may contain multiple families or individuals living under one roof,” city spokesperson Eric Johnson told The News Tribune.

Emergency housing provides a short-term place for unhoused people or those at imminent risk of becoming unhoused. Basic health, food, clothing and personal hygiene needs are also addressed. Emergency shelters are defined as facilities that offer a temporary shelter for unhoused people.

“The main difference between the two is the configuration,” Johnson told The News Tribune. “Emergency shelters tend to be congregate in nature versus emergency housing tends to be individual housing units.”

State law allows cities to require business licenses from any individual or group that operates within city limits. The ordinance the city approved would create a licensing program specifically for scattered site units, permanent supportive housing and transitional housing.

The licensing program “does not prevent the … creation of permanent supportive housing and transitional housing,” according to the ordinance presented during the council meeting. It would make it unlawful to operate those types of housing without a license.

The applicant must meet safety and operational requirements such as keeping an adequate supply of heat and water. Standards of conduct must also be met, including not engaging in drug-related activities at rental premises.

Failure to comply with the requirements and standards may result in a “good neighbor agreement.” A business license may be denied or revoked if an agreement isn’t obtained.

Local housing providers, including Share and Care House of Puyallup, suggested edits to the licensing program, such as referencing tenant/landlord laws as well as removing the good neighbor agreement.

Executive Director Charlene Hamblen told The News Tribune on Feb. 7 that Share and Care House offers permanent supportive housing, among other things. The agency has about 150 units throughout the county dedicated for that type of housing — between 20-30 are in Puyallup.

She said the licensing program appears to be more restrictive rather than encouraging of permanent supportive housing.

“If anyone in the neighborhood presents a concern, it brings forward this big process for resolution, which is an additional burden that no other landlord would be required to participate in,” Hamblen said.

The News Tribune also spoke with Kevin Bates Feb. 7, the CEO of Helping Hand House, another local housing provider. One of the services Helping Hand House provides is emergency shelters. He said HB 1220 is “flawed at its core.”

“They tried to do shelter, housing, day centers and permanent supportive housing all under one bill,” Bates said. “You can’t do that.”

Ric Rose of Homeward Bound in Puyallup, a local nonprofit that provides services for those experiencing homelessness, wrote in an email Feb. 7 that HB 1220 may have an “unintended consequence” as it will impose regulations on permanent supportive housing and transitional housing in the city, making it challenging to create them.

“This debate does not affect Homeward Bound in Puyallup directly because we do not provide these types of housing services, but we certainly support accessibility of this type of housing for our clients in Puyallup in an effort to end their homelessness,” Rose said.

Palmer said during the council meeting that he supported the zone changes, but he wasn’t supportive of the good neighbor agreement. He said a portion of the first ordinance that outlines standards of safety and operation was “too long” and “redundant.”

Witting said the housing providers in the city are doing a “good job,” and that he hopes there won’t be any “bad players” now that there’s a good neighbor agreement.

Palmer had an amendment for the first ordinance. He wanted to remove the good neighbor agreement portion and make nonprofit organizations exempt from license fees. It gained support from Door, but the amendment failed.

“(The good neighbor agreement) is designed to be a last-ditch effort to try to reach some sort of solution,” city attorney Joe Beck said during the meeting.

Editor’s note: This story has been updated to include additional details about the differences between permanent supportive housing, transitional housing, scattered site units, emergency housing and emergency shelters.