May a city or county deny a building permit if an applicant has unresolved enforcement issues?
Depending upon what the enforcement issues are, the authority to withhold or deny the permit may exist, but, as a general rule, there is no discretion. In Craven v. City of Tacoma, 63 Wn.2d 23, 28 (1963), the state supreme court stated in part: A property owner has a vested right to use his property under the terms of the zoning ordinance applicable thereto. State ex rel. Hardy v. Superior Court, 155 Wash. 244, 284 Pac. 93. A building or use permit must issue as a matter of right upon compliance with the ordinance. 9 Am. Jur. 203, ยง 7. . . . Once the application for a building permit and the plans and specifications filed with it show that the proposed building will conform to the zoning regulations and meet the structural requirements of the building code of the city, the permit shall issue as a matter of right, and the ordinances vest no discretion in the building department of the city to refuse either the application for or to deny the issuance of the building permit. (Our emphasis
