Housebarges Getting The Hook Seattle Cracking Down On Dwellings Illegally Moored On City Waters

The owner of the “Lucky Duck” housebarge is feeling anything but lucky these days.

The city of Seattle is cracking down on floating dwellings illegally moored on city waterways, lakes and rivers, and the “Lucky Duck” is among those that have to go.

“I can understand why people want to buy these. Great idea, great style and a great view. They’re just not legal,” said Molly Rice, the city’s marina inspector.

The ordinance limiting housebarges was passed seven years ago. In 1992, 31 existing barges were exempted. Since then, at least that many barges have quietly appeared along Lake Union, Lake Washington, the Duwamish River, Elliott Bay and near the Ballard Locks, Rice said.

Last week, Rice’s office started posting notices on barges telling occupants and owners they have to move.

Glass blower Richard Lipset bought the “Lucky Duck” last year to get a better vantage point on Lake Union.

“It’s a whole other universe, kind of a bubble within the city,” he said. “It’s great to be out on the water. It feels clean.”

Lipset has less than a week to enjoy the boating life. He was the first to receive word that the city considered his boat a housebarge and will fine him $75 per day if it isn’t moved by Thursday.

“Why I can’t live on my own property is confounding,” Lipset said. “I really can’t perceive how a city that’s having a housing emergency would single me out. I’m just trying to live my life here. No pun intended, but I really don’t want to make any waves.”

Lipset plans to appeal the violation notice. His vessel is licensed as a boat and is equipped with a steering wheel and outboard motor, details he hopes will help challenge the city’s definition of the “Lucky Duck” as a barge.

“It’s a boat,” he said.

The city’s action pleases Lyn Sullivan Lee, who recently bought a nearby floating home with her husband, Doug. Lee, who has lived on a barge, understands their appeal but doesn’t want to share the lake with them.

“Houseboats are heavily regulated and it’s a good thing, but barges don’t have the same types of regulations attached to them,” she said.

Like houseboats, barges can be attached to city water and utility lines, but only barges are allowed to dump gray water - waste water from showers and sinks - into the lake.

Lee says the “Lucky Duck” barge is cute and its owner responsible, but she echoes critics who contend that barges threaten to upset the tenuous balance of commercial and residential use of the lake.

“When you start to add housing to the lake, it has a big impact on the environment,” Rice said.

“In the early 1990s, the city moved to minimize the residential use of lake. We’re just following through.”