Pasco, WA Business Licensing & Operations: Auto Repair on Residential Property (2026)

Pasco licenses home-based businesses as accessory uses to a residence under PMC Chapter 25.150, but a defined list of activities can never qualify, no matter how small-scale. PMC 25.150.020 states these uses and any similar in nature are barred due to their increased potential for hazardous or nuisance conditions: dog boarding and kenneling, vehicle repair and/or maintenance, rebuilding motors, painting vehicles, welding, sheet metal shops, upholstering, firewood cutting, and any Group H Occupancy as defined under the International Building and Fire Code the City has adopted.

Because the ordinance also reaches uses 'similar in nature,' a resident cannot sidestep the ban by rebranding auto repair as detailing, mobile mechanic dispatch, or small-engine work performed from the garage. For occupations that are allowed, PMC 25.150.040 sets the baseline: the business must be clearly subordinate to the home's residential use, performed entirely inside a permanent structure, staffed only by residents of the dwelling, limited to one occupational vehicle under 14,000 pounds GVW stored outside, capped at 20 percent of the home's gross floor area (or up to 600 square feet of an attached/detached garage), and held to noise limits of 55 dBA from 8:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. and 45 dBA overnight.

Applications go through the Business Licensing Service under Chapter 5.05 PMC to the Director of Community and Economic Development, who must decide within 10 working days (up to 30 calendar days with an extension) per PMC 25.150.050. A denial can be appealed to the Hearing Examiner under PMC 25.150.060, and an approved license already in effect can be revoked by the City Planner if the operation stops meeting the environmental standards or becomes a public nuisance under Chapter 9.90 PMC, per PMC 25.150.070.