Farmers, rural home-based businesses enjoy more flexibility

Code changes proposed today by King County Executive Ron Sims would make it easier for farmers to make a living on their farms and for rural residents to operate a small home-based business.

The changes were suggested by rural residents and business-owners during an extensive Rural Economic Strategies public process launched last year by Sims.The Rural Economic Strategies, among other ideas, called for more review of county regulations and procedures with the idea of removing unnecessary obstacles to farmers and home-based businesses and thereby improving the rural economy.

"Together, we are mapping out a vision to strengthen the rural economy and preserve a way of life that benefits not only people who live in rural areas, but everyone in King County," Sims said. "Rural residents are not only offering innovative ideas that can make a positive difference, they are providing terrific and necessary feedback on the ideas they feel will not work in their communities."

For example, Sims said rural residents made it loud and clear they want more flexibility to develop and operate home-based businesses, but that these businesses should be of a size and scale that is compatible with rural residential areas.

"The idea is to strike the proper balance between making it easier to run a home-based business while protecting neighboring property owners from noise, traffic, and other impacts those businesses can sometimes cause," Sims said.

The proposed code changes would largely mean less restrictive permitting processes for certain uses at rural home and farm businesses. They would allow more opportunities for farmers to sell directly to customers and allow for uses such as more space for making and selling products, more farm workers to reside on the farm, and more employees to work at a home-based business. Forest thinning, animal specialty services such as dog day care facilities, wineries and breweries, and preservation of historic structures are among a long list of topics addressed by the code changes.

The Rural Economic Strategies initiative is the result of a year-long public process involving rural residents, foresters, business owners and rural stakeholder groups. King County's Office of Business Relations and Economic Development worked closely with rural Unincorporated Area Councils, rural chambers of commerce, the King County Agriculture Commission and Rural Forestry Commission to identify issues of importance to them. Sims said revisiting codes for farm businesses is overdue.

"Agriculture in King County has changed dramatically in the last 50 years and even in the last decade," Sims said. "Today there is a trend toward more niche markets and opportunities for value-added products - such as jams and jellies, rather than whole berries. We need to give farmers the tools they need to make this transition."

Wade Bennett, of Rockridge Orchards and Bamboo Groves, echoes this sentiment. "Executive Sims and his administration recognize that the rural landscape in the county is made up of resource lands and these resource lands are businesses and contribute to the economic base of the county," he said. "Resource lands are in fact land factories that process and produce food. I feel the resource-based ordinance is on the right track. Without the flexibility provided by these proposed changes, farmers will not be able to afford to make a living with their land factory, they will move elsewhere and the resource land will turn into a bedroom community. Both the State Growth Management Act and the King County Comprehensive Plan call for the maintenance of these resource lands and that is what this ordinance is attempting to do."

Among the code changes proposed are more flexible agricultural processing standards that will make it easier for farmers to add value to their products and provide greater opportunity for them to sell products directly to the consumer. Sims said he wants to shift more uses away from the conditional use permit process to being outright permitted uses, when such uses are compatible and allow resource land owners to add value to their business.

Sims' proposed changes include incentives to protect King County designated historic buildings, including barns, to encourage sales and processing by eliminating the size limits on floor area devoted to in these buildings.

The code changes are encompassed in two proposals that Sims has submitted to the Metropolitan King County Council for approval. One is an ordinance that deals with resource-based activities and animal care, while the second proposes amendments to an ordinance already under review by the council that addresses home occupations and home industries.

For more details about the Rural Economic Strategies, contact Julia Larson, at 206-296-1062, or visit: http://www.metrokc.gov/exec/bred/business/Projects/Rural.htm. King County also has a new Web site that highlights the many services that are available to rural residents: http://www.metrokc.gov/rural/.

This release is also posted on the King County Executive's Web site, at http://www.metrokc.gov/exec.

RURAL ECONOMIC STRATEGIES CODE CHANGES

Below is a summary of the rural code changes proposed by King County Executive Ron Sims to the Metropolitan King County Council today.

Resource Based Activities and Animal Care

Farmworker Housing
Many farms in King County are now large enough operations to require workers year-round, but existing regulations allow no more than two accessory dwelling units and require the farmer to live on the farm. The proposed ordinance increases the number farm worker housing units based on the size of the farm. It also eliminates the requirement that the farmer also live on the farm, which is often impractical.

Animal Specialty Service
This change will allow animal services, such as dog day care and animal shelters, as a stand-alone business in the rural area through a conditional use permit. Smaller day cares for dogs as a home occupation will continue to be allowed as a permitted use.

Retail Nurseries
Currently, retail nurseries are classified along with building, hardware and garden stores. This change creates a separate category for retail nurseries and would allow them as permitted uses in the rural zones with the retail sales area limited to 3,500 square feet. The sales area limit does not apply if sales take place in a King County designated historic building.

Agricultural Product Sales
One of the greatest opportunities for farmers to expand their income is to sell their products directly to the consumer. This change will allow the floor area devoted to sales of agricultural products to be up to 3,500 square feet as a permitted use. The sales area limit does not apply if sales take place in a King County designated historic building.

Manufacturing of Food and Kindred Products
Value-added products, such as jams, baked goods, and salsas, create another opportunity for farmers to expand their business. This change will allow the floor area devoted to agricultural processing to be up to 3,500 square feet as a permitted use. On agriculture zoned properties 35 acres or larger, this limit is increased to 7,000 square feet. The production area limit does not apply if the operation takes place in a King County designated historic building.

Wineries and Breweries
King County provided the opportunity to establish a winery in the rural and agricultural zones in 2003. Farmers are now making cider and other fruit-based alcoholic beverages for sale at local farmers markets. Additionally, the county has farmers interested in growing grapes on south-facing slopes with the plan to make wine in the future. This change would bring the winery provisions in line with the manufacturing requirements for other agricultural products.

Forestry Thinning
This change would promote the health of a forest by allowing forest thinning within aquatic areas, wetlands, steep slopes and in wildlife areas without imposing a six-year moratorium on development. The thinning must be consistent with a conversion option harvest plan and a county approved forest management plan.

Home Occupations and Home Industries
(Includes Executive's recommendations for changes to a home-based business ordinance proposed by the council's Growth Management and Natural Resources Committee).

Indoor area devoted to home occupation
Many home businesses use accessory buildings for part of their business, such as an office or a treatment room. Existing regulations limit the use of these accessory buildings to storage. The committee's amendment would allow unlimited use of accessory buildings for the home occupation, which proved to be a concern to many of those who commented on this proposal. The Executive is proposing to allow these accessory buildings to be used for all activities related to the home occupation, but to limit the floor area that may be used for business purposes based on the size of the lot.

Outdoor area devoted to home occupation
Existing regulations allow use of outdoor areas for home occupations in RA zones, but limits the area to one percent of the lot, up to a maximum of 5,000 square feet, and requires these outdoor storage areas to be screened. The committee modified the allowable area by establishing a minimum outdoor area and then increasing that allowable area in increments based on lot size. The committee also recommended eliminating the screening requirement. The screening requirement received considerable support in public comments and Sims' proposal would retain it.

Number of employees
Sims supports the committee's change to increase the number of non-resident employees on site, but suggests adding a clarification that the limit is for all employees reporting to the site regardless of whether they are full time or part time employees. The proposed amendment also clarifies the status of employees who never visit the premises of the home occupation. Since they have no impact on the surrounding property, there is no reason to limit their number.

Services to patrons
The Executive is proposing that patrons to home occupations be required to make an appointment, consistent with the existing code. King County heard concerns from the public regarding increased traffic to-and-from the business in these predominately residential zones if patrons were not required to arrive by appointment.

Parking
Home based businesses need to provide sufficient parking for non-resident employees visiting the site. Sims included changes to ensure that additional parking is available if there is more than one non-resident employee.

Sales
Consistent with the existing code, the Executive proposes that sales be limited to patrons by appointment or by mail order, telephone, and internet sales with delivery to off-site locations. The committee's amendment would have limited what home occupations are allowed to sell. There were some concerns from the public that this change would have unnecessarily restricted the kinds of businesses allowed as home occupations.

Vehicles
The Executive agreed with the committee that a home business owner needs more flexibility in determining individual business equipment needs, but had concerns with the impact this equipment can have on surrounding neighbors. The committee recommended that an increasing number of vehicles be allowed as part of the home occupation based on the size of the lot. Experience with the existing limitations has shown that these types of regulations are difficult to implement. The Executive is proposing to eliminate existing limits on the number and size of vehicles and heavy equipment allowed on a lot. In the place of limits on vehicles, his proposal would require business vehicles to be parked or stored in the outdoor storage areas or indoor areas devoted to the home occupation.

Home Industries
The committee proposal and the changes the Executive recommends make it easier to operate a home occupation in King County. These proposed changes begin to blur the line between a home occupation, which is a permitted use, and a home industry, which is a conditional use. Therefore, the Executive proposes corresponding changes to the home industry classification. He suggests that the amount of floor area of accessory buildings and the amount of outdoor area devoted to the home industry be established through the conditional use. Sims is also proposing to increase to five the number of non-resident employees allowed in a home industry.