Asche v. Bloomquist

133 P.3d 475, 132 Wash. App. 784
Court of Appeals of Washington·Decided March 14, 2006·No. No. 32942-5-II·Published·Cited by 46 cases

Opinion

Bridgewater, J.

¶1 Richard and Helen Asche appeal the dismissal of their nuisance and mandamus actions for failure to state a claim. But at oral argument, the Asches confirmed they have abandoned their mandamus claim. We hold that their failure to file a land use petition within 21 days of the issuance of the building permit as required by RCW 36.70C.040 is determinative. Thus, their claims for nuisance, either public or private, fail, and their due process actions fail because they did not properly file under the Land Use Petition Act (LUPA), chapter 36.70C RCW We affirm.

¶2 On February 3, 2005, Richard and Helen Asche (Asches) filed a complaint for injunctive relief based on public nuisance and a writ of mandamus against Melany Bloom-quist and Steven Chobot (Bloomquists), Cindy Baker as director of the Kitsap County Department of Community Development, and Kitsap County (County). On February 8, 2005, the Asches amended the complaint to include a private nuisance claim. They wished to stop the Bloomquists from building a house on the Bloomquists’ property and to compel the County to issue a stop-work order. In the alternative, they sought damages for losing their Mount Rainier view.

¶3 The amended complaint alleged that the Bloomquists owned adjoining property to the Asches and had been granted a building permit on September 9, 2004. It further alleged that the Asches did not have notice of the building permit or notice that the new building would adversely impact [789] their view until after they contacted the builder who had just completed the garage portion of the building on December 6, 2004. The complaint further alleged that when they contacted the County, the County told them not to hire an attorney and that the County would “handle it” without an attorney. Thus, the Asches did not file an action until February, two months after learning their view would be impacted and roughly five months after the building permit issued.

¶4 The Bloomquists’ lot is rectangular with a 40-foot-wide neck of land extending up a hill. The County calculates the maximum allowable height under the applicable zoning ordinance as the midslope of the property’s buildable area. Kitsap County Code (KCC) 17.321C.040. In this case, although no building could be built on the 40-foot neck, the County included that portion in its calculation. The result was that the maximum ridgeline was 221 feet.1

¶5 The Asches argued that the building permit was erroneous because the County misapplied the zoning ordinance and miscalculated the maximum allowable height of the structure. Excluding that neck, the Asches contend that the allowable building height is nine feet lower than the County approved.

¶6 On February 18, 2005, the trial court heard the Bloomquists’ and the County’s CR 12(b)(6) motions to dismiss the Asches’ claims as barred by LUPA’s 21-day statute of limitations for judicial review. RCW 36.70C.040. The court agreed with the defendants and dismissed all of the Asches’ claims. The Asches appealed but have abandoned their claim for mandamus against Kitsap County.

¶7 We review CR 12(b)(6) dismissals de novo. Reid v. Pierce County, 136 Wn.2d 195, 200-01, 961 P.2d 333 (1998). Dismissal is appropriate only if “ ‘it appears beyond doubt that the plaintiff can prove no set of facts, consistent with the complaint, which would entitle the plaintiff to relief.’ ” Haberman v. Wash. Pub. Power Supply Sys., 109 Wn.2d 107, [790]*790120, 744 P.2d 1032, 750 P.2d 254 (1987) (quoting Bowman v. John Doe, 104 Wn.2d 181, 183, 704 P.2d 140 (1985)). We must also accept the allegations in the complaint and any reasonable inferences as true. Reid, 136 Wn.2d at 201.

I. LUPA’s Applicability to the Bloomquists’ Permit

¶8 The Asches argue on appeal that LUPA does not apply to their suit because they lack standing under it. Specifically, they argue that they are not “aggrieved” parties under the statute and therefore cannot invoke the statute’s remedy provisions. Br. of Appellant at 10. They also argue that the exceptions in LUPA for a suit for monetary damages apply.

¶9 We review questions of statutory construction de novo. City of Pasco v. Pub. Employment Relations Comm’n, 119 Wn.2d 504, 507, 833 P.2d 381 (1992). We look to the statute’s plain language in order to fulfill our obligation and to give effect to legislative intent. Lacey Nursing Ctr., Inc. v. Dep’t of Revenue, 128 Wn.2d 40, 53, 905 P.2d 338 (1995). When faced with an unambiguous statute, we derive the legislature’s intent from the plain language alone. Waste Mgmt. of Seattle, Inc. v. Utils. & Transp. Comm’n, 123 Wn.2d 621, 629, 869 P.2d 1034 (1994).

¶10 Initially, we note that LUPA applies to the issuance of this building permit because the building permit was a land use decision. LUPA is the exclusive means of judicial review of land use decisions. RCW 36.70C.030. Land use decisions are defined in the statute to be a “final determination by a local jurisdiction’s body or officer with the highest level of authority to make the determination” on:

(a) An application for a project permit or other governmental approval required by law before real property may be improved, developed, modified, sold, transferred, or used ....
(b) An interpretative or declaratory decision regarding the application to a specific property of zoning or other ordinances [791] or rules regulating the improvement, development, modification, maintenance, or use of real property; and
(c) The enforcement by a local jurisdiction of ordinances regulating the improvement, development, modification, maintenance, or use of real property. . . .

RCW 36.70C.020(1). In Samuel’s Furniture, Inc. v. Department of Ecology, 147 Wn.2d 440, 453, 54 P.3d 1194 (2002), the Washington Supreme Court noted that a grading building permit was a final determination for purposes of LUPA. The court has also specifically noted that “[b]uilding permits are subject to judicial review under LUPA.” Chelan County v. Nykreim, 146 Wn.2d 904, 929, 52 P.3d 1 (2002).

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Asche v. Bloomquist, 133 P.3d 475, 132 Wash. App. 784 (Wash. Ct. App. 2006).

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