WHATCOM COUNTY, WA (MyBellinghamNow.com) – A new statewide housing study will start work in Whatcom County.

Whatcom County Council approved the interlocal agreement establishing a Healthy Housing Study in a 4-3 vote during its regular meeting on Tuesday, Feb. 11.

Sustainable Connections will handle the local portion of the study that seeks to evaluate tenant and landlord relations, as well as rent rates. Sponsor Senator Sharon Shewmake secured the funding for the study using the Department of Commerce’s funds during the last legislative session.

Councilmember Jon Scanlon, who sat in on meetings between Shewmake and community stakeholders, said that the study will help establish communications between Whatcom County and its cities.

“So, the idea was: could we have some kind of entity that helps the coordination across the county and the different cities?” Scanlon said. “To make that easier and to reduce the cost of housing for folks and to make it easier for folks to rent out their properties.”

Councilmembers Tyler Byrd, Ben Elenbaas and Mark Stremler opposed approving the agreement as they thought it was a money grab for a non-profit. Executive Satpal Sidhu urged the approval of the study as he thought they needed to evaluate property management on a greater scale.

“There are companies who own a hundred thousand homes in Washington state. One company owns a hundred thousand homes in Washington state,” Sidhu said.

Sustainable Connections has until the end of June to spend the $190,000, which spurred the making a decision on the agreement ahead of Elenbaas’s calls for a tabling of the discussion.