PORT TOWNSEND — To Sharon and Jerry Kania, their rental, Birds Nest Cottage next to their U Street home near Fort Worden State Park, offers a popular alternative in a lodging market dominated by motels, hotels and bed-and-breakfast inns.

To the city of Port Townsend, it’s in violation of the law.

“It’s business. I’m giving a service to this town, sir,” Sharon Kania said, pointing out that the cottage accommodates families with children and small pets.

Group expected at council meeting

The Kanias said they will be among at least 20 uptown homeowners with accessory dwelling units, commonly called mother-in-law cottages, who are expected to approach the Port Townsend City Council on Monday after the city sent out letters threatening enforcement action on the city’s ban on such housing for temporary vacation rentals.

The council meeting will begin at 6:30 p.m. in the council chambers on the second floor of historic City Hall, 540 Water St.

The crackdown came after city officials discovered more than 20 owners were advertising their cottages on Vacation Rentals By Owner’s website, www.vrbo.com.

The Kanias and Sharon’s sister, real estate agent Sandy White, are among the approximately 24 others who received warning letters from the city dated May 4.

Sharon said the city has given those accessory dwelling unit owners a month to comply with city code and cancel future guest reservations, or they will be fined $250 for each day they are in violation.

Rick Sepler, city director of development services, said the city is merely enforcing the adopted code.

The law dating back to 1990s and amended by the City Council in 2007 is intended to encourage the use of such dwellings for affordable monthly rentals, not nightly or weekly visitor accommodations.

“It was never discussed that these should be income opportunities for folks,” Sepler said.

The code also is intended to protect the residential character of neighborhoods, and to prevent them from being turned into “commercial” areas filled with vacation rentals, city officials said, who cite increased weekday evening noise and evening vehicle trips.

Letter from neighbors

The Kanias have a letter they will present to the City Council that is signed by three of their neighbors who say there have been no negative effects from the cottage, such as noise or parking issues.

The Kanias’ cottage, like most others, have kitchen and even laundry facilities for guests, an 850-square-foot home-away-from-home.

They hire maids and a gardener to keep the place clean and tidy.

Sharon pointed out the cottage’s home-like features that have accommodated visitors from Europe and Canada — many attending the Fort Worden-based jazz and country blues festivals put on in the summer by Centrum.

“People who stay for the blues and jazz festivals, they can’t find a room in Port Townsend,” Sharon said.

“It’s just ridiculous.”

Don’t want motels

Those the Kanias cater to are often temporarily working in town and don’t want to stay in motels, hotels or bed-and-breakfast inns, Sharon said.

Visitors from Seattle seeking a brief respite near Admiralty Inlet also stay at the cottage with a water view.

White, who owns the Almost Uptown Cottage next to her home at F and Cherry streets, also rents to visitors with small pets.

She said she had the cottage built two years ago with the intent of moving into it and selling her home once she retires, but until then she wants to rent it either daily, weekly or monthly.

“I have even had some who are staying here to go to the Sequim Lavender Festival,” White said, adding she has sold four homes to people who stayed at her sister’s cottage and were enticed into buying Port Townsend homes.

She said she and her sister act as tourism ambassadors who, like others in the lodging industry, refer people to places to eat and things to see.

“We all keep a list of things to do and where to go,” she said.

Bob Middleburg, owner of Admiralty View Guest Studio on Jackson Street overlooking the inlet to Point Wilson Lighthouse, addressed the council in February 2007, saying he had been unable to get a license to operate a tourist accommodation.

Seeks license

He then told the council he wanted the city to consider giving those with accessory dwelling units the ability to be licensed transient accommodations.

Middleburg on Friday said he and his wife, Carole, received the city letter and would be among those attending Monday’s council meeting.

“We’re taking the position that we’re reducing it to 30 days or longer vacation rental,” he said, which would comply with city law.

“But there’s no market there, so I suspect we’ll close. It will be a loss of income and a loss of choice of places for people to stay.

Middleburg and the Kanias said the city law intended for affordable housing cannot be applied to uptown and Morgan Hill cottage and studio accommodations because the area is some of the highest-priced real estate in Port Townsend and is not really affordable at all.

“We all feel that the city is really wrong in their thinking,” Sharon Kania said.

The Planning Commission in 2006 voted unanimously against allowing vacation rentals, and the council in February 2007 voted 4-2 to not allow transient use in accessory dwelling units, with then-councilmen Frank Benskin and Geoff Masci voting no.

Voting for it were Mayor Michelle Sandoval, Councilwoman Laurie Medlicott, and councilmen Scott Walker and Mark Welch.

Sepler said the city this year hired an assistant city attorney to help enforce city codes.

“My charge is to enforce the code,” Sepler said.

“The other choice is for council to redirect the Planning Commission to revisit the issue” or for the council to reconsider it.

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Port Townsend-Jefferson County Editor Jeff Chew can be reached at 360-385-2335 or at jeff.chew@peninsuladailynews.com.