A Pierce County motel still rents rooms by the hour. This city just said no more
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- Fife City Council approved an ordinance banning hotels and motels from hourly rentals.
- City cited link between hourly room rates and drug activity, prostitution and trafficking.
- Violations will be misdemeanors; ordinance takes effect five days after publication.
On Tuesday night, the Fife City Council unanimously approved an ordinance that would bar hotels and motels from renting rooms on an hourly basis.
According to the agenda, there is evidence that at least one motel in Fife offered that rate. City manager Derek Matheson told The News Tribune on Wednesday that the city would not disclose which motel “because it’s the subject of an ongoing police investigation, and we don’t want to compromise their work.”
“Offering hotel or motel rentals on an hourly basis can facilitate illegal activity such as drug dealing and use, prostitution and human trafficking,” according to the background summary for the ordinance. “Prohibiting hourly hotel/motel rentals is intended to make it more difficult to conduct illegal enterprises within the City.”
Any violation of the ordinance would be punishable as a misdemeanor, which could result in a fine up to $1,000 and 90 days in jail, said city attorney Greg Amann during a first reading of the ordinance at an Aug. 23 council meeting. The penalty would most likely be a fine to the person or agency offering the sale, he said. Amann said patrons can stay as long as they’d like in a hotel room, but would have to pay a daily rate if the ordinance was approved.
The ordinance goes into effect five days after its passage, approval and publication, according to the ordinance language. Amann said a notice has been sent to all the hoteliers in the city.
This story was originally published October 15, 2025 at 2:59 PM.
