HomeMy WebLinkAboutC_Response_Email_Howell_211013_v11
Clark Close
From:Clark Close
Sent:Wednesday, October 13, 2021 9:56 AM
To:showell@niius.com
Subject:RE: PR21-000359 at 95 S. Tobin St. (LUA21-000345)
Attachments:C_Unclassified_Use_Determination_IBHTF_210716_v1.pdf
Mr. Howell,
Thank you for your initial comments related to Aristo Healthcare Services IBHTF (LUA21-000345, ECF, CU-H -
https://edocs.rentonwa.gov/Documents/Browse.aspx?id=8792321&dbid=0&repo=CityofRenton); received on October
7, 2021 wherein you raised concerns regarding the proposed project. Please see responses to your questions and
comments below. Your comments have been included in the official project file and you have been made a party of
record.
Thank you for your interest in this project and if you have any further questions or comments moving forward please
feel free to contact me.
Regards,
Clark H. Close
Senior Planner
City of Renton
425-430-7289
COVID-19 UPDATE
City Hall is currently closed to the public but we are still available to assist you.
• Pay Invoice and Apply for Over-the-Counter Permit: Permitting Portal
• Schedule an Inspection: Permitting Portal -OR- Building: 425-430-7202; Civil/Site: 425-430-7203
• Contact Staff:
o Building or General Permitting: permittech@rentonwa.gov or 425-430-7200
o Planning: planningcustomerservice@rentonwa.gov or 425-430-7294
o Public Works Permitting: pwpermitting@rentonwa.gov or 206-402-8626
o Code Compliance: Renton Responds or 425-430-7373
-----Original Message-----
From: Scott Howell <showell@niius.com>
Sent: Thursday, October 7, 2021 3:25 PM
To: CityClerk <CityClerk@Rentonwa.gov>
Subject: PR21-000359 at 95 S. Tobin St.
CAUTION: This email originated from outside the City of Renton. Do not click links, reply or open attachments unless you
know the content is safe.
City of Renton Staff,
I am writing to express my substantial concerns regarding the proposed project. My Company owns, occupies and rents
to a retail establishment at the corner of Tillicum Street and Lake Ave S. Most significant concerns follow:
2
* The neighborhood is mixed commercial and residential. And there is a high school a short distance away. Introducing
transitioning mental patients into a mixed neighborhood like this will likely enhance an already tense situation between
tenants/residents and the homeless. Please look up the number of police calls in the area. Our building alone averages
at least one call for assistance to the police a month.
Response: To obtain police 911 calls, Valley Communications is our dispatching center and they would need to be
contacted to look up the number of police calls in the area via their public records portal:
https://www.valleycom.org/records-request.html. For a snapshot of case reports taken from a specific area, you can
access cityprotect.com, this is a free crime mapping website that is subscribed to by our Police Department.
* Retail in the area is already challenged enough by the effects of Covid and the concerns for individual safety. If we lose
more retail, what use will those building find that fits the zoning? It is not an attractive area for office.
Response: Covid-19 has impacted retail businesses across the world. Please visit https://whyrenton.com/covid/ for a
local Covid-19 Resource Guide. See Renton Municipal Code (RMC) 4-2-060, Zoning Use Table for uses allowed in the
Commercial Arterial (CA) zoning designation. The purpose of the Commercial Arterial Zone (CA) is to evolve from “strip
commercial” linear business districts to business areas characterized by enhanced site planning and pedestrian
orientation, incorporating efficient parking lot design, coordinated access, amenities and boulevard treatment with
greater densities. The CA Zone provides for a wide variety of retail sales, services, and other commercial activities along
high-volume traffic corridors. Residential uses may be integrated into the zone through mixed-use buildings.
The existing building consists of two floors plus an intermediate level for a gross area of 19,262 square feet. The
proposed project would be located on the first level of the building and would occupy a total of approximately 7,151
square feet. The remaining space in the building would continue to be leased to third-party tenants and operated for
commercial office uses.
* It does not seem to me that a residential transitional mental facility meets the definition of the surrounding zoning.
Why this location and in this zoning?
Response: Please find attached unclassified use determination for the proposed intensive behavioral health treatment
facility. The unclassified use determination presents the analysis and results of the unclassified use determination for
the proposed IBHTF.
* We are having to install enhanced security measures at our building. This is due to increased crime and vandalism.
Other neighbors are doing the same. It is hard to imagine how the proposed facility will do anything to help the
security/safety matters.
Response: Aristo Healthcare Services is proposing to invest an estimated two million dollars into building construction
improvements for the behavioral healthcare facility. If approved, there would be 16 resident patients who would each
reside on-site for an average of 9-24 months during their rehabilitation and about 17 full time employee (FTE) staff to
run the facility (with about 4-8 staff on-site at any given time). IBHTFs provide a community-based, home-like
environment where individuals with behavioral health diagnoses can reside in a group setting while engaging in
rehabilitation.
Thanks for your attention,
R. Scott Howell
2827 Mountain View Ave N., Renton WA
3