Spokane Municipal Code

Title 12 Public Ways and Property

Chapter 12.05 General City Property

Section 12.05.005 Definitions

1. “Agent” means any person acting within the scope of employment by or acting on behalf of the City of Spokane including City-facility property managers.

2. “Baby changing facility” means a table or other device suitable for changing the diaper of a child.

3. “Employee” means any person holding a regularly compensated position of employment with the City of Spokane including elected officers.

4. “Basic City Facility” or “Basic City Facilities” means public safety facilities, including fire and police stations; City-owned water reservoirs and other utility facilities; city-owned and city-funded facilities providing emergency shelter or transitional housing; and community centers. For purposes of this chapter, utility facilities shall not include privately constructed utility facilities, stormwater facilities and conveyance systems, or water and wastewater utility transmission and distribution systems and related appurtenances, to include without limitation, pipe replacements and relocations; well upgrades; pump stations; lift stations, etc.

5. “City-funded” facility with respect to an individual facility means a facility receiving $50,000 in the aggregate in any calendar year from the City, directly or indirectly, including but not limited to the general fund expenditures, special revenue or tax funds, and grants, and including any funds for which the city is a fiscal or pass-thru agent. This term does not include any facility that provides services to domestic violence victims, as defined in RCW 70.123.020.

6. “Emergency shelter” means a facility that provides a temporary shelter for individuals or families who are currently homeless. Emergency shelter may not require occupants to enter into a lease or an occupancy agreement. Emergency shelter facilities may include day and warming centers that do not provide overnight accommodations. This term does not include any facility that provides services to domestic violence victims, as defined in RCW 70.123.020.

7. “Federal civil immigration enforcement operations” means an operation than has one of its objectives the identification or apprehension of a person or persons in order to investigate them for a violation of the immigration law and subject them to one or more of the following:

1. 1. Civil immigration detention;

1. 2. Removal proceedings; and

1. 3. Removal from the United States

8. “Good neighbor agreement” means a supplemental written agreement as part of a City contract with a provider or operator to foster communication and collaboration among parties associated with the emergency shelter or transitional housing facility, which contains the following framework:

1. 1. Establishment of a good neighbor communication team shall consist of the following stakeholders, each of whom commits to the requirements of the agreement:

1. 1. 1. Representative(s) of the operator of the emergency shelter or transitional housing facility; and

1. 1. 2. Representative(s) from the City’s Community, Housing, and Human Services (CHHS) Department; and

1. 1. 3. A representative from the City’s Office of Neighborhood Services;
          
   2. The good neighbor communication team may include any of the following, each of whom commits to the requirements of the good neighbor agreement and to the terms of the executed Good Neighbor Agreement as conditions to participation on the communications team:

1. 1. 1. A resident of the emergency shelter or transitional housing subject to the Good Neighbor Agreement;

1. 1. 2. The council chair or designee of the neighborhood council representing the geographic area where the facility is located;

1. 1. 3. Property owners, residents, and tenants residing or operating a business immediately adjacent to the facility;

1. 1. 4. The Spokane Police Chief or his/her designee;

1. 1. 5. A member or staff employee of the City Council;

1. 1. 6. A representative from the City’s Code Enforcement and Parking Division; and

1. 1. 7. A representative from the local school district if school-age children are expected to be served.

1. 3. A requirement that the communication team establish and maintain regular points of contact for communications on a seven-day, 24-hour basis, including name(s), telephone number(s), electronic mail address(es) and other means of communication to address any public health and safety issues arising from the operation of the facility.

1. 4. A designated point-of-contact ensuring a shelter availability website is updated in coordination with the Community, Housing, and Human Services (CHHS) Department.

1. 5. A commitment of the good neighbor communication team to attend, upon reasonable advance notice and request, meetings of the neighborhood council representing the geographic area where the facility is located.

1. 6. The executed agreement shall include specified remedies and methods of dispute resolution in the event there is a breach of the terms of the Good Neighbor Agreement.

1. “LEED” is a green building rating and certification system developed by the U.S. Green Building Council to evaluate environmental performance from a whole building perspective, including sites, water efficiency, energy & atmosphere, materials & resources, indoor environmental quality, locations & linkages, awareness & education, innovation in design, and regional priority.

10. "Nonpublic" means any area of a City facility or property that is not generally open and accessible to the general public, but instead requires prior to entry express permission, such as a valid ticket for a bona fide passenger, or permission by a City employee or an employee of a tenant in a City facility on an individual basis. Areas posted as “Restricted” in City facilities shall be considered to be non-public areas.

11. “Transitional housing” means a project that provides housing and supportive services to homeless persons or families for up to two years and that has as its purpose facilitating the movement of homeless persons and families into independent living. The term does not include transitional housing with fewer than twenty residents.

12. “United States Citizenship and Immigration Services” means the agency of the United States Department of Homeland Security and any successor agency charged with overseeing United States immigration laws.

13. “United States Customs and Border Protection” means the agency of the United States Department of Homeland Security and shall include any successor federal agency charged with border enforcement.

14. “United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement” means the agency of the United States Department of Homeland Security including Enforcement and Removal Operations and Homeland Security Investigations and shall include any successor federal agency charged with the enforcement of immigration laws.

15. “U.S. Green Building Council” is an organization serving as the nation’s foremost leaders from across the building industry working to promote buildings that are environmentally responsible, profitable, and healthy places to work and live.

Date Passed: Monday, June 16, 2025

Effective Date: Wednesday, July 30, 2025

ORD C36692 Section 3