The Washington State Department of Health filed an order to revoke the Thunderbird Motel’s Transient Accommodations License after the agency inspected the Aberdeen motel in December and noted a long list of code violations. Kenko Management LLC, which owns the motel, has appealed and will argue its case in a court hearing that has yet to be scheduled.
The motel at 410 W. Wishkah St. remains open pending the appeal and appeared to be occupied as of Friday afternoon.
On Dec. 2, a state inspector conducted an onsite investigation of the motel in response to a complaint that the facility was in a state of serious despair, with the building having a cockroach infestation and staff failing to provide clean towels and toilet paper to patrons.
The motel’s interior and exterior common areas, including laundry, utility and guest rooms, were inspected as well as the building’s balcony and railing, fire extinguishers and fuel burning appliances. Thunderbird employees were interviewed during the visit.
The inspection revealed a litany of allegations about unsanitary conditions the Department of Health deemed a hazard to tenants and employees, including hypodermic needles found in rooms of the hotel as well as mattresses stained with what appeared to be blood and urine, according to court documents.
Three guest rooms were observed to have their front windows broken out, with sheets of plywood and dimensional lumber used to cover the openings. In two instances, shards of broken glass remained in the window frames.
The report filed by the Department of Health says most of the exterior lights on both the first and second floor of the motel were damaged or inoperable. Exterior fire extinguishers were missing completely or had not been inspected for 12 months or more.
In the guest laundry room, findings from the inspection state, hundreds of cockroaches were observed crawling over a bag of garbage and in a feces-filled cat litter box, while hypodermic syringes were found on top of the washer and dryer. The ceiling fan in the laundry water closet was dangling from the electrical supply wires.
Cockroaches were reported to be found all over the motel, with the bugs seen on piles of trash, litter boxes, feces filled toilets, and in areas where leftover food was left to rot in unclean rooms. The main laundry room was covered with food scraps, according to the report and dishes were partially submerged in decaying bean soup.
Carbon monoxide alarms were missing from multiple rooms.
Out of the seven guest rooms inspected, only one was “ready to rent.” The beds in the room were made, but visibly soiled, stained and grimy, according to court documents. Aside from the cockroaches, inspectors found various refuse and garbage in the room, including a credit card, a collection of small screwdrivers a wallet and identification and used condoms.
Based on the inspection’s findings, the DOH issued an initial order to revoke the motel’s license because the unsanitary conditions and state of disrepair violate a number of Washington Administrative Codes. However, the motel has appealed the order and will appear in court to state its side of the story.
James Kim is an attorney representing Kenko Management LLC and said the motel is working to fix what it needs to.
“The bottom line is that the motel fully intends to get back into compliance as soon as possible. It is not their desire to operate in inadequate facilities.
In court documents Kenko LLC states that because this was the first notice of violations and there was no time to correct them, “the penalty was too harsh.”
Jack Bucknell, an attorney with the state Attorney’s Generals’ Office who is representing the Health Department said there should be a scheduling call within the next two weeks in which a judge can talk with both parties and discuss the case. Bucknell said a hearing must be set within 180 days of the scheduling call and expects both parties to show up in court sometime within the next six months.
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