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

On March 1, 2005, the Institute for Justice Washington Chapter filed a lawsuit against the City of Seattle to vindicate the right of Blayne and Julie McAferty to lawfully pursue their chosen livelihood as innkeepers.  In 2004, the McAfertys had opened their Greenlake Guesthouse in accordance with Seattle’s bed-and-breakfast law.  But a few months later, at the behest of a handful of individuals who wanted bed and breakfasts banned from the neighborhood, the City adopted a new and illogical interpretation of that law and ordered the McAfertys to shut down.  Their offense?  Before opening, the McAfertys had added, with City approval, two window dormers to their home.  According to the City’s after-the-fact interpretation, those dormers were actually illegal “exterior structural alterations” because they had been “made to accommodate [a] bed and breakfast.” 

Represented by IJ-WA, the McAfertys sued the City to vindicate their right to earn an honest living free from unreasonable government interference.  They prevailed when, on August 14, 2006, the City repealed the arbitrary “exterior structural alteration” ban and subsequently dismissed the citation it had issued against the McAfertys.