Residents of unincorporated King County communities must be notified by the county building department when a social service agency wants to build in their neighborhood. The sweeping reform was part of a "Good Neighbor Bill" approved by the Metropolitan King County Council on Monday, June 13.

Councilmember Dwight Pelz led the charge to incorporate a host of social service agencies into a measure originally intended to apply only to "mega-houses."

"It doesn’t make sense to limit the county’s notification requirements to communities where a mega-house will be built," said Pelz, who represents the Highline area of King County and a portion of Renton on the council. "The original measure targeted only upper income communities, where mega-houses might locate. By adding social service agencies into the mix, the county will grant the same rights to lower income communities which tend to bare the burden of housing a majority of these human service facilities."

The "Good Neighbor Bill" requires public notification of a social service or mega-house application in urban residential areas, as well as a mandatory public comment period. Currently, many agencies do not have to meet any public notification requirements. The measure calls for King County to meet several requirements when an application for such a project is submitted, including:

• Require the Department of Development and Environmental Services (DDES) to mail notices to all property owners within 500 feet of the proposed development, as well as notify the county councilmember in whose district the project falls. The public notice will include a description of the project, the location, a list of the permits included in the application, and where the application and any environmental documents or studies can be found;

• Require the applicant to post at least one sign on the proposed construction site within two weeks of applying for permits, to notify the public of the proposal. The sign must be in a visible location for the public; and,

• Require a 21-day public comment period on the proposed construction. The comment period would begin 15 days after an application for construction is completed.

Pelz’s amendment would require that neighbors be notified when social service agencies, which are not recognized under the provisions of the Fair Housing Act, move into their community. More specifically, King County must notify residents when the following agencies have applied for a building permit: Offender self-help agencies; Parole offices; Settlement houses; Halfway home of delinquents and offenders; and, Homes for destitute men and women.

"I am a strong believer in the outstanding work performed by many of these agencies," added Pelz. "However, when a human service provider has plans to move into a community, it is important that their neighbors are made aware and have an opportunity to comment."

Last year, Pelz released an analysis of the distribution of controversial subsidized and at-risk housing in King County, which showed that a disproportionately small number of communities bear the brunt of accommodating human services. The report, "Distribution, Disparity and Disproportionality," points out that areas with higher numbers of human service agencies are characterized by lower property values. The study also states that areas with higher property values house fewer human service agencies.