Lacey, WA Home Business: Home Daycare (2026)

Chapter 16.65 of the Lacey Municipal Code sorts child care by size. Under § 16.65.010(C), family home child care is a state-licensed facility where care is provided for twelve or fewer children in the family living quarters where the licensee resides. Section 16.65.020 permits it in all zoning districts of the City of Lacey, inside a residential dwelling, on five conditions.

The home must comply with all building, fire safety, and health codes and obtain a business license from the city. Lot size, building size, setback, and lot coverage follow the standards of the zoning district, unless the structure is a legal nonconforming structure. The use must meet the off-street parking and loading requirements of Chapter 16.72 LMC. Signage is capped at one flush-wall sign with a maximum area of two square feet. Finally, no structural or decorative alteration is allowed that would alter the single-family character of an existing or proposed residential structure or be incompatible with surrounding residences.

The code defines child day care in § 16.65.010(A) as supplemental parental care and supervision for children not related to the provider, on a regular basis for less than twenty-four hours a day, under license by the Washington State Department of Social and Health Services. The definition leaves out casual, non-recurring babysitting, care in the child's own home, and cooperative child care by a group of parents in their respective homes. A program serving thirteen or more children is a child day care center under § 16.65.010(D) and falls under § 16.65.030, which sends centers in residential districts to a conditional use permit. Section 16.69.020 states that operating a family day care home as defined in Chapter 16.65 LMC is not defined as a home occupation, so the five conditions of § 16.65.020 are the zoning test for these homes.

The business license step runs through LMC 5.12.010(B). The building official reviews the application against the Title 14 building codes, the planner against Title 16 zoning, and the fire marshal against the fire code. The city notifies the applicant of the results within ten working days, and appeals go to the city's hearing examiner under LMC 5.12.010(F).