Seattle, Washington Bed & Breakfast

McAfertys v. City of Seattle
Challenging Seattle's Irrational Bed & Breakfast Regulations

	Institute for Justice Washington Chapter clients Blayne and Julie McAferty

The City of Seattle claims to have passed its 2003 bed and breakfast law to encourage residents to open B&Bs. Unfortunately, the City interprets its ordinance in such a way that irrationally limits the number of B&Bs in Seattle—and in the process harms entrepreneurs, neighborhoods and visitors. At the behest of individuals who want bed and breakfasts banned in their neighborhood, the City adopted a new and illogical interpretation of its bed and breakfast law. Caught in the middle are Julie and Blayne McAferty, who opened the Greenlake Guest House B&B in accordance with the law, but who are now being told by the government that they must shut down their only means of providing an income for themselves. The excuse for the shutdown? The McAfertys added dormers to their home, a supposedly illegal exterior alteration.
 
To make matters more ridiculous, if the McAfertys are forced to sell their home/B&B because of this change in the City’s interpretation of its law, the next owner could open that same home up as a B&B, but the McAfertys, who lovingly renovated their home, may not.
 
On March 1, 2005, the Institute for Justice Washington Chapter filed a lawsuit against the City of Seattle seeking to vindicate the rights of the McAfertys to lawfully pursue their chosen livelihood without the enforcement of arbitrary, excessive and irrational laws and regulations. The City, after allowing the McAfertys to open their B&B, changed the rules in midstream and violated their constitutional rights. The McAfertys are suing the City of Seattle, the City of Seattle Department of Planning and Development, and Diane Sugimura, in her official capacity as Director of the City of Seattle Department of Planning and Development.
 
The goal of the Institute for Justice Washington Chapter in filing this lawsuit is to restore economic liberty—the right to earn an honest living—as a fundamental civil right.

Essential Background		Images
Backgrounder: No Room at the Inn—Challenging Seattle's Irrational Bed & Breakfast Regulations		Client Photo
		Client Video - none available
Latest Release: Seattle B&B Can Remain Open for Business (February 27, 2007)		Legal Briefs and Decisions
		none available
Launch Release: Bed, Breakfast & Bureaucracy: How Seattle Quashes New B&Bs (March 1, 2005)
Case Timeline
none available
Additional Releases		Maps, Charts and Facts
Release: Seattle City Council Passes Legislation to Promote Bed and Breakfasts; Bill Fosters Economic Opportunity, City Neighborhoods (August 8, 2006)		Chart: Bed & Breakfasts In The Seattle Region
		Download: Entrepreneurship in The Emerald City-Study Spotlights Ridiculous Regulations That Hamper Seattle Entrepreneurs
		Op-eds, News Articles and Links
		Article: B&B Victory, Liberty & Law (October, 2006)
		Op-ed: City should make it easier to open a bed-and-breakfast Seattle Times (June 14, 2006)
		Article: New rules proposed for B&Bs in homes Seattle Times (June 13, 2006)
		Article: No Room at the Inn For Big Government, Liberty & Law (April 2005)
		Article: What kind of law lets your neighbor shut you down? Seattle Times (March 9, 2005)
		Op-ed: There's no room at the inn for government nonsense Seattle Times (March 3, 2005)
		Article: Green Lake B&B sparks an outcry KING-TV (March 1, 2005)
		Article: Seattle agency orders B&B shut by end of March Seattle Times (February 16, 2005)