CHS Community Post | Public hearing on Swedish Major Institution Master Plan

On Thursday, June 12, beginning at 6 PM the public will be given an opportunity to present oral and written comments on the proposed “Major Institution Master Plan” (MIMP) and Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS) for the Swedish Medical Center campus in the Central Area.  (The campus  is between 15th and 19th Avenues, and E. Jefferson and E. Cherry Streets.)  Thursday’s  hearing will be held at the Auditorium of the Swedish Medical Center, 500 17th Avenue.

This hearing is one of the most important opportunities for the public to weigh in on and help shape the Master Plan.  At the end of the process the Department of Planning and Development (DPD) will make a recommendation and the Seattle City Council will make a decision.  Public comments, such as those received at the hearing, will be an important part of the record used to make that decision.

The proposed plan by the Sabey Corporation and Providence Health and Services through its subsidiary Swedish Medical Center, the two owners of the campus can be reviewed on DPD’s Web site:  http://web1.seattle.gov/dpd/Luib/Notice.aspx?BID=920&NID=17372

The proposal would allow development of buildings as tall as 240 feet and up to 1.9 million square feet of floor space.  (The current maximum allowed height on the campus — applicable to only a part of the campus — is 105 feet. )  The DEIS predicts development according to the proposed plan could mean as many as 11,250 daily vehicle trips to and from the campus.  The impacts from a development of such height and scale are numerous.

Sabey and Providence/Swedish allege that they will need the additional space to maintain the existing uses and to provide for new medical research, clinic, and associated uses, as well as some new hospital beds.

Those opposed to the proposal allege that Sabey and Providence/Swedish are organizations with property in many Puget Sound locations and that Seattle’s Comprehensive Plan calls for intensive development to take place in urban centers and urban villages and not in a low-rise residential zone.  They believe that residential neighborhood vitality will be seriously impacted unless the development proposal is scaled back.

This Thursday is your chance to learn more and to express yourself.  If you cannot attend the public hearing, written comments will be accepted until 5 PM on July 6.  Comments should be sent to [email protected]