ReasonableAccommodation-ApprovalLetter.pdf
August 15, 2008
Bobby Mills
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8112 206 Street SW
Edmonds WA 98026
Sara Winters
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1138 6 Avenue South
Edmonds WA 98020
Arthur Coday Jr., M.D.
Lynnwood Medical Center
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19720 68 Avenue West – Suite B
Lynnwood WA 98036-4568
RE: Reasonable Accommodation Request for Sara Winters
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1138 6 Avenue South (RS-6 zone) | Files STF-2008-0017 and BLD-2008-0271
Dear Mr. Mills:
In letters dated July 29, 2008 and August 6, 2008 you submitted a reasonable accommodation request on
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behalf of the owner, Sara Winters, for her property located at 1138 6 Avenue South. Chapter 17.05 of
the Edmonds Community Development Code (ECDC) was enacted to authorize staff, when necessary, to
reasonably accommodate the statutory rights of the disabled under the Americans with Disabilities Act,
the Fair Housing Act or the Washington Law Against Discrimination. The subject request was to allow
the construction of stairs within the north and west setback property extending down from the existing
second-story deck in order to provide safe egress from the back portion of the house in the event of an
emergency. The addition of the stairs would exceed the maximum 35% lot coverage requirement. The
building permit application for the proposed stairs is currently being reviewed under file BLD-2008-0271.
According to ECDC 17.05, the Development Services Director may vary, modify, or waive the provisions
of the Edmonds Community Development Code in order to provide a reasonable accommodation as
necessary to provide to a disabled person’s (or care provider to the disabled person’s) full enjoyment of a
residence. In this case, staff has confirmed that the owner is disabled and has “limited mobility” as stated
in the letter from her doctor, Arthur Coday, Jr., M.D. and qualifies under the above code citation for this
request.
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Pursuant to Chapter 17.05 of the ECDC, the City is willing to grant proportionate reasonable
accommodation subject to the preparation and recording of a covenant which includes the following
items:
1)Property address and legal description.
2)Description of the stairs (location, size).
3)A plot plan showing property lines, the existing residence, and location and dimension of the
stairs, which shall be attached as an exhibit.
You submitted the above items with your building permit application, thank you. The owner, Sara
Winters, would need to agree to the following language in the covenant:
EXHIBIT A
1.Owner will inform her successors and assigns of the property described in that a
reasonable accommodation has been granted pursuant to ECDC 17.05.040 to allow the construction
of an accessible back stairway off the second story deck to provide safe egress from the back portion
of the house in an emergency.
EXHIBIT A
2.Owner will inform her successors and assigns of the property described in that the stairs
EXHIBIT B
shown inare constructed within the 15 foot setback from the west property line, and
causes the total lot coverage to exceed the maximum allowed 35 percent.
3.Owner will inform her successors and assigns of the property described in Exhibit A that the
reasonable accommodation is personal to the Owner and shall not run with the land.
4.Owner will inform the City Building Official in writing within 30 days of any change in property
ownership.
5.Owner shall remove the stairs within three months if the stairs are no longer required for accessible
egress. In the event that the stairs are no longer required for accessible egress, Owner shall obtain all
required demolition permits for the removal of the stairs prior to commencing that work.
6.Owner shall obtain a complete building permit for the stairs in accordance with all construction codes
and ordinances in effect on the date of the application for the building permit. Any and all
deficiencies noted during inspection of the stairs shall be corrected within 60 days of notification.
The draft covenant was submitted to the City for review on August 11, 2008. A new covenant was
created and approved by staff on August 15, 2008. The covenant shall be recorded with the Snohomish
County Auditor and the applicant shall return one (1) copy of the recorded covenant to the Planning
Division. This was also a condition of approval on the building permit application. Please be aware that
Planning staff will not sign off on your Planning Final Inspection for your building permit until the copy
of the recorded document is returned to the city.
If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me at (425) 771-0220, extension 1778, or via email
at coccia@ci.edmonds.wa.us.
Sincerely,
Gina Coccia
Associate Planner
cc: File STF-2008-0017
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