The Board of Health received a briefing in March 2025 regarding this ordinance and there have been no revisions to the ordinance since then.
On March 1, 2022, revisions to the Washington State Retail Food Code (chapter 246-215 WAC) went into effect, including the repeal of WAC 246-215-09180, which had allowed unplumbed espresso stands to meet the requirements necessary to obtain an operating permit. The repeal resulted in over 70 of these facilities in Snohomish County falling out of compliance with the updated food code. The Health Department has been working to address concerns from these affected permit holders.
The food safety program will now require all unplumbed espresso stands to apply for a variance from the current version of the Washington State Retail Food Code. This change is proposed in Ordinance BOH25-02. Variance applications typically require a fee, but given the circumstances of this repeal, these could be waived to avoid penalizing permit holders.
Ordinance BOH25-03 is intended to address the inequity of imposing a variance fee on unplumbed espresso stands that were legally operating before March 1, 2022. It amends the fee schedule to direct readers to the newly created section (SCBHC 1.40.046). This section allows the variance application fee to be waived for unplumbed espresso stands and provides criteria and clarifications, including that a new owner of any existing unplumbed espresso stand would be required to either pay the variance application fee or bring the stand into compliance with plumbing requirements. Unplumbed espresso stands without a current permit would be ineligible for a variance to plumbing requirements.