14.50.070 Application and review.

(1)    A property owner and capital provider shall complete a project application and submit it to the program administrator for review.

(2)    The project application shall require:

(a)    An attestation by the property owner that the project is a “qualified improvement” as defined by Section 14.50.020(14).

(b)    For an existing building seeking improvements (i) where energy or water usage improvements are proposed, a certification by a licensed professional engineer, stating that the proposed qualified improvements will either result in more efficient use or conservation of energy or water, the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions, the addition of renewable sources of energy or water, or the reduction of lead in potable water; or (ii) where resilience improvements are proposed, a certification by a licensed professional engineer stating that the qualified improvements will result in improved resilience and savings in insurance, improved property values, or other benefits sufficient to leverage financing of those improvements.

(c)    For new construction, a certification by a licensed professional engineer stating that the proposed qualified improvements, individually, or acting as a whole, will enable the project to exceed the energy efficiency or water efficiency or renewable energy or resilience requirements of the current building code of the county.

(3)    The program administrator shall review the application according to the application checklist solely to determine whether it is complete, proposes a “qualified improvement,” contains no errors on its face, and that all information is provided in the substance and form required by the application checklist. If so, the program administrator shall sign the checklist indicating that the project application is deemed approved. If a project application is incomplete and/or does not conform to the requirements of the application checklist, the program administrator shall inform the applicant as soon as practicable that the application is denied, the reasons for the denial, and any corrections that could make the application acceptable. If feasible, the applicant shall have an opportunity to correct the application.

(4)    Upon approval of a project application, a property owner or capital provider shall provide the completed forms to the community development department for execution at least five (5) days prior to close of the C-PACER transaction, along with a requested date for recordation of the assessment agreement, notice of assessment interest and C-PACER lien, and assignment of notice of assessment and assessment agreement.

(5)    The county shall record in its real property records the assessment agreement, the notice of assessment interest and C-PACER lien, and the assignment of notice of assessment and assessment agreement, at the date requested by the property owner and capital provider or, at the request of the property owner and the capital provider, the executed documents may be delegated for recordation by the parties to the C-PACER transaction.

(6)    For a property owner and capital provider whose project application is denied by the county’s program administrator, either party, or both, may request an adjudicative proceeding before the county’s adjudicative body, consistent with the county’s rules and subject to the applicable provisions of Washington’s Administrative Procedures Act, Chapter 34.05 RCW. (Sec. 1 of Ord. 2021-10-04)