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Home My WebLink AboutSEPA EPIC-25-90 - CITY OF RENTON - VALLEY MEDICAL CENTERRENTON VALLEY MEDICAL CENTER EPIC -25 -90 CITY OF TUKWILA 6200 SOUTHCENTER BOULEVARD, TUKWILA, WASHINGTON 98188 PHONE # /206)433.1800 Gary L. VanDusen, Mayor September 11, 1990 Mary Lynne Myer, Senior Planner City of Renton Planning /Building /Public Works Department Municipal Building 200 Mill Avenue So. Renton, WA 98055 RE: D.E.I.S. for Valley Medical Center. Medical Office Building II and Ambulatory Care Center. Dear Ms. Myer, Thank you for the opportunity to comment on this document. The Tukwila City Engineer has reviewed this analysis and concludes that there are no significant impacts on the City. Please contact Vernon Umetsu at 431 -3684 if there are any changes in the proposed project or analyses. Sincerely, Jac P. Pa e Act g SEPA Responsible Official rz_o cAPt6eold ? (-7(Pd SEP 1 0 1990 TUKWILA PUBLIC WORKS PLS Dv( Fok_ - f [0 S(G!\((P(CAA( T - yUKW((- (� P4 C7 5 -'mss_ 12_ ( �c7 TIA L S( CAS c'D 5 T / e-s- d- t 4 c <( G. 47"/ C N1 oct s u/z.CC f\-1 (J S Y c f ei P C- 0 -4 1 Td -M V /L C6' Earl Clymer, Mayor CITY OF RENTON Department of Planning /Building /Public Works Lynn Guttmann, Administrator August 30, 1990 SUBJECT: Draft Environmental Impact Statement for Valley Medical Center - MOB II /ACC ECF -063 -89 Transmitted herewith is a copy of the Draft Environmental Impact Statement for the Valley Medical Center Medical Office Building II and the Ambulatory Care Unit. The project site is located at 400 South 43rd Street, Renton, Washington 98055. PROPOSAL: The Proposed Action involves approval of a Conditional Use Permit, Site Plan, and a Building permit to allow construction of a 110,970 sq. ft. medical office building on the northwest portion of the Valley Medical Center Campus. Also included in the proposed action is a Building Permit for relocation of the existing Ambulatory Care Center (ACC) to another building on campus and use of the vacated ACC space for medical services. Three other alternatives were analyzed in the document and include: 1) Modified Full Development; 2) Medical Office Building South; and 3) No action. IMPACTS: As a result of the State Environmental Policy Act (SEPA) Scoping process, comments were received from governmental agencies and interested citizens regarding the major issues that needed to be analyzed in the DEIS. Those issues included the following: Land Use and Aesthetics: Relationship of the proposed action and alternatives to land use patterns in the area, existing plans and policies, and westerly views; Traffic and Parking: Effect of the proposed action and alternatives on traffic, parking and circulation; and Public Services - -Fire: Impact on existing City of Renton fire protective services. The DEIS identifies a variety of mtigation measures. The document is available at the Development Services Department, Third Floor, Renton Municipal Building, 200 Mill Avenue South, Renton, Washington 98055. The copies cost $8.00. Information in the document will be used by the City of Renton to make informed decisions regarding this proposal, consistent with the intent of the State Environmental Policy Act (SEPA). Written public comment 200 Mill Avenue South - Renton, Washington 98055 - (206) 235-2631 on the DEIS is encouraged and will be accepted for 30 days from this date. Following the 30 day review period, responses to comments will be prepared and incorporated in a Final Environmental Impact Statement (FEIS). Written comments on the DEIS will be accepted through October 1, 1990 and should be addressed to: Donald K. Erickson, AICP Zoning Administrator Planning /Building /Public Works Department Attn: Mary Lynne Myer 200 Mill Avenue South Renton, WA 98055 A public hearing to accept written and oral comments on the DEIS will be held in the Renton City Council Chambers on Tuesday, September 18, 1990, at 7:30 PM, 200 Mill Avenue South, Renton, Washington. If you have questions, please call Mary Lynne Myer at 235 -2550 for additional information: Sincerely, Donald K. Erickson Zoning Administrator D R A F T ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT STATEMENT for the VALLEY MEDICAL CENTER MEDICAL OFFICE BUILDING II and AMBULATORY CARE CENTER City of Renton Planning /Building /Public Works Department Prepared in compliance with the State Environmental Policy Act of 1971 (Chapter 43.21C, Revised Code of Washington); the SEPA Rules, effective April 4, 1984, as revised (Chapter 197 -11, Washington Administrative Code; and Renton's Rules Interpreting and Implementing SEPA (Ordinance No. 3891). Date of Issue: August 31, 1990 Date Comments Due: October 1, 1990 Project Title: Proposed Action: Location: Proponent: Lead Agency: FACT SHEET VALLEY MEDICAL CENTER MEDICAL OFFICE BUILDING II and AMBULATORY CARE CENTER The Proposed Action involves approval of a Conditional Use Permit, Site Plan, and a Building Permit to allow construction of a 110,970 sq.ft. medical office building on the northwest portion of the Valley Medical Center campus. Also included in the Proposed Action is a Building Permit for relocation of the existing Ambulatory Care Center (ACC) to another building on campus and use of the vacated ACC space for medical services. The other three alternatives analyzed in this EIS include: Modified -Full development; Medical Office Building South; and No- Action. Renton, Washington 400 S. 43rd St. Valley Medical Center (King County Public Hospital District Number 1) City of Renton Tentative Date For Implementation: Fall 1990 Responsible Official: City of Renton Environmental Review Committee Contact Person: Mary Lynne Myer Senior Planner Planning /Building /Public Works Department Municipal Building 200 Mill Ave. South. Renton, WA 98055 (206) 235 -2550 Licenses, Permits & Approvals: Authors & Principal Contributors to this DEIS: Date of Issue of DEIS: Date All DEIS Comments Due: Public Hearing: o City of Renton - Conditional Use Permit - Site Plan Review - Building Permits - Clearing & Grading Permit - Mechanical Permits o State of Washington - Labor & Industries - Electrical Permits This environmental impact statement has been prepared for the City of Renton. Research and analysis were provided by: o Huckell /Weinman Assoc.,Inc. ( Terry McCann, EIS project manager ) o CENTRAC & David Evans Assoc. ( Don Carr, Coord. traffic analysis ) August 31, 1990 Written comments will be accepted through close of 1, 1990. Please comments to Mary address noted on EIS. on this document from August 31st business October address all Lynne Myer at the page i of this A public hearing to discuss impacts noted in this DEIS is scheduled for 7 :30 p.m., September 18, 1990 at. the City Council Chambers, Municipal Building 200 Mill Ave. S. Renton. ii Location of Background Data: DEIS Availability: o .City of Renton Planning /Building /Public Works Department Municipal Building 200 Mill Ave. South Renton, WA 98055 o Huckell /Weinman Assoc.,Inc. 205 Lake St. S. #202 Kirkland, WA 98033 o CENTRAC 18804 North Creek Parkway Bothell, WA 98011 Copies of this DEIS have been distributed to agencies, organizations and individuals noted on the Distribution List (Appendix A to this document). A limited number of copies are available for purchase at the Planning /Building /Public Works Department (Municipal Building, 3rd Floor). Cost: $8.00 iii TABLE OF CONTENTS Section Page FACT SHEET i I. SUMMARY A. Proponent /Project Location 2 B. Background Information 2 C. Proposal Objectives /Alternatives Considered 3 C. Environmental Impacts 8 D. Mitigation Measures 12 E. Significant Impacts that Cannot be Mitigated 12 II. ALTERNATIVES INCLUDING THE PROPOSED ACTION A. Proponent /Project Location 14 B. Background Information 14 C. Need for Project & Proponent's Objectives 23 D. Description of Proposed Action 26 E. Alternatives 36 Alternative 1 - No Action 36 Alternative 2 - Reduced Scale Development 37 Alternative 3 - Relocated Medical Office Building 37 III. AFFECTED ENVIRONMENT, SIGNIFICANT IMPACTS and MITIGATION MEASURES IV. A. Land Use 41 B. Transportation and Parking 64 C. Public Services - Fire 93 SIGNIFICANT IMPACTS THAT CANNOT BE MITIGATED 98 REFERENCES 99 APPENDICES A. Distribution List 102 B. List of Elements of the Environment 108 iv Figure Page 1 Vicinity Map 16 2 Campus Plan 17 3 King County Public Hospital District #1 18 4 Site Plan 27 5 Proposed Medical Office Building as Viewed from the Southwest 30 South and West Elevations 31 7 North and East Elevations 32 8 Cross - section of Proposed Medical Office Building as Viewed Looking East 33 9 Possible Building Location South Campus 38 10 Land Use 43 11 Site Cross - section 49 12 Westerly View Corridor 50 13 Probable View Impact as Seen Looking West from Talbot Road S 51 14 Probable View Impact as Seen Looking Southwest from Talbot Road S 54 15 Comprehensive Plan and Zoning 56 16 Existing Street Network 65 17 1989 AM Peak Hour Turning Movements 67 18 1989 PM Peak Hour Turning Movements 68 19 1995 AM Peak Hour Traffic Volumes Without Expansion of VMC 76 20 1995 PM Peak Hour Traffic Volumes Without Expansion of VMC 77 vi 21 1995 AM Peak Hour Traffic Volumes Preferred - Proposed Action 79 22 1995 PM Peak Hour Traffic Volumes Preferred - Proposed Action 80 23 1995 AM Peak Hour Traffic Volumes ' Alternative 2 81 24 1995 PM Peak Hour Traffic Volumes Alternative 2 82 25 1995 AM Peak Hour Traffic Volumes Proposed Action 84 26 1995 PM Peak Hour Traffic Volumes Proposed Action 85 27 1995 AM Peak Hour Volumes with Hospital Expansion - Alternative 3 86 28 1995 PM Peak Hour Volumes with Hospital Expansion - Proposed Action 87 vii SECTION I. — SECTION I SUMMARY A. PROJECT PROPONENT /PROJECT LOCATION The proposed Valley Medical Center Medical Office Building II and Ambulatory Care Center are sponsored by King County Public Hospital District No. 1. The site of the Medical Office Building II is approximately a one -half acre area in the northwest portion of the Valley Medical Center campus, north of the Hospital and the Psychiatry Wing and west of Talbot Professional Center. The Ambulatory Care Center would be relocated from the Hospital to the lower level of the Psychiatry Wing (existing building). Refer to Figure 2, page 13 of this DEIS. The address of the property is 400 South 43rd Street Renton, Washington 98056. B. BACKGROUND INFORMATION Valley Medical Center (VMC) is a part of King County Public Hospital District Number 1. The District was established through election by residents of the Renton, Kent and Tukwila area in 1947 and incorporated as a municipal corporation in 1948. The Hospital District is governed by a publicly - elected board of commissioners. The District encompasses an area of approximately 100 square miles and includes Renton, Kent, Tukwila and unincorporated Southeast King County. The estimated population in this service area is approximately 374,000 (Valley Medical Center. 1989. Facts Pamphlet 1989). King County Public Hospital District Number 1 provides a broad range of health care services and programs, all of which are located on the 42 -acre campus of Valley Medical Center. Key programs include: o Acute Care Needs o Ambulatory Care Center o Cardiopulmonary Services o Coronary Care Unit o Emergency Services o Endoscopy Department o Intensive Care Unit o Laboratory (clinical and pathology) o Nuclear Medicine o Obstetrics o Psychiatric Services o Radiation Oncology o Radiology /ultrasound o Surgicenter 2 The Hospital District (VMC) employs a total of approximately 1,700 people on a 3- shift /day operating schedule. C. PROPOSAL OBJECTIVES and ALTERNATIVES CONSIDERED Obiectives The need for this project evolves from a goal of the Hospital District which is to: "assure the health care needs of people living and working in its principal service area are met, and are met in a manner which promotes: o High quality care o Appropriate use of resources o Cost - effective delivery of services" (Ibid). Three major factors contribute to the specific need for this project. Its purposes are to: o provide high quality, professional medical office space proximate to the Hospital to meet the existing demand by specialists and subspecialists for such space; o provide quality educational space to meet the increasing demand for: continuing medical education of doctors, nurses and support staff; and additional educational space to meet the needs of an increasing number of support programs (such as Alzheimer's, Head Injury, CPR, etc.); and o relocate and consolidate the existing Ambulatory Care Center to provide more efficient delivery of services. The applicant's objectives for the major components of the project are described below. Medical Office Building General Goals o serve the health care needs of a growing population; o meet community needs by providing a convenient location for patients to see their physicians proximate to the hospital; o emulate the model established by major U.S. health care facilities, by encouraging physician specialists to 3 locate proximate to major health care centers -- in order to provide greater efficiency in the delivery of services, help keep medical - related costs down and reduce traffic and parking impacts; Services /Facilities Goals o improve accessibility to the emergency room for physician specialists, who establish their practices in the vicinity of Valley Medical Center and require expedient access to the emergency room, by providing rentable medical office space in a new medical office building on the campus of Valley Medical Center, adjacent to the Hospital; o meet the expanding educational needs of the medical staff at the hospital, and the increasing needs for community continuing health -care education (health education, wellness classes, and birth classes) by providing additional space in a new medical office building on the campus of Valley Medical Center; Locational Goals o situate the medical office building so that it relates functionally with Talbot Professional Center, Valley Medical Center Hospital and the Valley Medical Center parking garage and provides convenient and unincumbered (handicap accessible) pedestrian connections between the facilities; o site the medical office building in a location on the Hospital campus which does not inhibit future Hospital expansion; Circulation /Parking Goals o facilitate pedestrian traffic flow between the Valley Medical Center parking garage, Talbot Professional Center and the Hospital through elevated, covered and level walkways for the benefit of infirm individuals and to minimize on- campus pedestrian /vehicular traffic conflicts; o maximize the use of existing covered parking facilities and create and plan for the development of future parking facilities on the campus to meet the future needs of Valley Medical Center; Design Goals o maximize the use of the Hospital's property and minimize lot coverage by developing a high -rise office structure; 4 mind. o orient the medical office building on the site so that views from Talbot Professional Center are not substantially impaired and vehicular traffic circulation on the Valley Medical Center campus is not adversely affected; o design the medical office building to complement the architectural character of existing buildings on the campus and enhance the campus -like setting; Operational Goals o permit hospital expansion through a lease arrangement which does not draw on the capital needs of the Hospital -- for example, a possible ground lease to a partnership of physicians with the physicians building, owning and operating the building; and o provide expansion space for existing services on campus including: Cardiac Rehab Services, Cardiopulmonary Services, Social Services, Human Services and Admitting Satellite Services. Ambulatory Care Center o locate the ambulatory care facility in a central location on the Hospital campus and in a larger space in order to consolidate related functions and provide more efficient delivery of services; The Proposed Action has been framed with these objectives in Four alternatives are discussed in this DEIS: the Proposed Action, a No Action alternative, a Reduced Scale Development, and a Medical Office Building (South) alternative. The following briefly describes each of these alternatives. Proposed Action The Proposed Action involves construction of a 5 -story medical office building of approximately 110,970 sq. ft. (net leasable area would be approximately 103,270 sq.ft.). The building would be oriented in an east -west direction and separated by approximately 50 feet from Talbot Professional Center. 5 It is proposed that the first floor of the 5 -story medical office building be devoted to hospital - related uses and the upper four floors leasable space for physicians. The building would contain approximately 19,404 sq.ft. of net leasable area on the first floor and, while the design of actual Hospital - related space on the first floor has not been finalized, it is expected that uses and leasable areas would include the following: o a 200 -seat auditorium (1,820 sq.ft.); o auditorium support storage (780 sq.ft.); o offices (education and learning center - 4,250 sq.ft.); o meeting rooms (5,520 sq.ft.); o kitchen in support of the meeting rooms (660 sq.ft.); o storage (1,850 sq.ft.); o corridor, lobby, coat room (3,050 sq.ft.); and o restrooms, mechanical space & stairwell (1,874 sq.ft.). It is anticipated that the leased space on the upper floors of the medical office building (approximately 83,867 sq.ft.) would be used as offices, clinics or laboratories -- similar to that at Talbot Professional Center. The other major element of the Proposed Action involves relocation and consolidation of the existing Ambulatory Care Center. The ACC provides comprehensive acute rehabilitation. Increases in existing ACC services and changes in standards of treatment have created increased demand for additional space. The Proposed Action would involve the relocation of ACC from the first and second floors of the Hospital (approx. 7,300 sq. ft.) to the lower level of the existing Psychiatry Wing. The lower level is presently shell space (approx. 18,000 sq.ft. of gross floor area) which includes exterior wall, columns and core mechanical space. All of the usable area (roughly 85% - 90% of the shell area) would be used for ACC. The proposed medical office building would be accessible from the south facade of the building and from two enclosed pedestrian bridges. One bridge would link the third level of the existing parking structure (immediately north) to.the third floor of the new medical office building. The other would connect the third floor of the proposed medical office building to the first floor of Talbot Professional Center. Since Talbot Professional Center is already connected to the Hospital by a tunnel, the proposed skybridge would provide direct pedestrian access (covered) from the proposed medical office building to the Hospital. 6 Parking for 38 vehicles (32 standard and 6 handicap) is planned for the area immediately south of the proposed medical office building and north of the existing Psychiatry Wing. Since this area currently provides parking for approximately 50 vehicles, the net change would be a loss of roughly 12 spaces in this portion of the VMC campus. The new parking area would be accessible from VMC's other parking lots in the area and from the internal ring roadway. Alternative 1 - No Action This alternative would involve no immediate changes to either the north or south campus areas. The site of the Proposed Action would remain as surface parking. This alternative would not satisfy any of Valley Medical Center's objectives for the project. (objectives are identified in Section II C of this DEIS). Alternative 2 - Reduced Scale Development This alternative is similar in concept to the Proposed Action, but would result in a medical office building of reduced scale. The smaller medical office building would be four stories high and contain approximately 87,574 sq. ft. of gross floor area, of which a total of 62,376 sq. ft. would be net leasable. Of the total amount of net leasable area, approximately 62,972 sq.ft. would be allocated for physicians (floors 2 through 4) and approximately 19,404 would be first floor Hospital - related use, similar in use and area to the Proposed Action. While this alternative would satisfy many of Valley Medical Center's objectives for this project, it would not "maximize the use of the Hospital's property and minimize lot coverage by developing a high -rise office structure." Alternative 3 - Relocated Medical Office Building (South) This alternative would involve siting the proposed medical office building on part of the 10 -acre portion of the Valley Medical Center campus located south of S. 43rd St. As with the Proposed Action, the Ambulatory Care Center would relocate and consolidate its operations in the lower level of the existing Psychiatry Wing. The bulk and scale of the medical office building would likely be the same as that of the Proposed Action. While meeting most of Valley Medical Center's objectives, this alternative would not satisfy any of VMC's specific objectives regarding location or circulation, i.e. it would not be connected to Talbot Professional Center or the parking garage; it would not provide the required pedestrian linkages; and it would not maximize use of the existing parking structure. 7 C. ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACTS Maior Issues to be Resolved As a result of the State Environmental Policy Act (SEPA) Scoping process, comments were received from governmental agencies and interested citizens regarding the major issues that needed to be analyzed in this DEIS. Those issues included the following: o Land Use: relationship of the Proposed Action and alternatives to land use patterns in the area, existing plans and policies, and westerly views; o Traffic & Parking: effect of the Proposed Action and alternatives on traffic, parking and circulation; and o Public Services - Fire: impact on existing City of Renton fire protective services. As noted in the SEPA Rules (197 -11 WAC), the content of the DEIS is determined by the Lead Agency (in this case the City of Renton) based, in part, on key sections of the SEPA Rules (402, 408, 430 and 440) together with results of the EIS Scoping process. This DEIS includes an analysis of the Proposed Action and each alternative's impact on land use, traffic and parking, and fire service. The following is an overview of the environmental analysis associated with each of these major issues. Land Use Patterns Implementation of the Proposed Action would change the use and character of the area in the immediate vicinity of the site. Existing surface parking would be replaced with a 5 -story building, driveways and surface parking. As indicated by Table 3, the overall pattern of land use on the entire campus would change only slightly. Locating professional office uses on the VMC campus would capture a portion of the demand for office space in the vicinity of the Hospital and would tend to internalize associated land use impacts, such as parking, traffic and noise. Overall, development of the Proposed Action is not anticipated to generate significant land use impacts or conflicts. The Proposed Action is not likely to significantly affect the character or rate of development occurring in adjacent areas in this portion of the City. Land use changes already occurring are the result of overall growth in the area and the region. The Proposed Action could incrementally contribute to these changes. At the same time, however, the Proposed Action would tend to capture some portion of future growth and focus it onto the VMC campus. The proposed office building is generally compatible with other uses on the VMC campus. 8 The medical office building would restrict some westerly views from viewpoints along Talbot Road S. in the vicinity of the entrance to the Chin Hills Building; some westerly views from offices in Talbot Professional Center and the Chin Hills Building; and some north or northwesterly views from the Psychiatry Wing and the Hospital. Alternative 1 - No Action: In the short -term, because the site would remain undeveloped, this alternative could impact land use either directly or indirectly. Demand for additional medical office space will likely continue, however, resulting either in future development of this north campus site, a possible south campus location or an off - campus site. Alternative 2 - Reduced Scale Development: Alternative 2 (reduced scale) would result in the same type of development but at a reduced scale. Impacts, at least in the short -term, would be generally the same as the Proposed Action, but at a lesser magnitude. Reduction in height of one story would result in a subsequent reduction in view corridor impact. Alternative 3 - Medical Office Building Relocated (South): Impacts of Alternative 3 would generally be the same as the Proposed Action. The effect on the local medical office space market would likely be the same as that of the proposal. Because of separation from the other major medical functions on the north campus, this alternative could increase the demand for developing the south campus and other adjacent properties. Such development could include additional medical office space or, in some cases, satellite operations of the major functions provided on the north campus. The north campus would likely be developed at sone future date with additional hospital - related uses. This alternative would not affect the westerly view corridor as viewed from Talbot Road S. Depending upon siting, however, it could result in a southwesterly view impact from S.W. 43rd St. Land Use - Relationship to Plans & Policies Renton's Comprehensive Plan Land Use Map delineates the general area of the site as Public /Quasi - public. Public facilities are typically those which are owned, operated or franchised by a general or special purpose type of government. Quasi - public uses are those "owned or operated by a nonprofit, religious or eleemosynary institution, and providing educational, recreational religious or similar type of public program" (Renton, City of. 1983. Ord. No. 3722 Amending the Zoning Code). The Proposed Action and Alternatives 2 and 3 are consistent with this public /quasi- public designation. 9 The Proposed Action and Alternatives 2 and 3 are generally consistent with Renton's comprehensive plan's goals and policies relating to utilities, community facilities, commercial facilities and transportation. King County's Soos Creek subarea plan (covers unincorporated area which borders the project site) is presently being revised and is expected to be adopted Fall 1991. The existing Plan was adopted in 1979. The Proposed Action and Alternative 2 are consistent with King County's existing Soos Creek subarea plan designation for the site. Alternative 3 would be inconsistent, because the proposed use is medical offices, whereas the Soos Creek Plan recommended single family. The Proposed Action is consistent with Valley Medical Center's Master Plan. The Master Plan projects probable future demand for services through the year 2005 and outlines a program of renovation and new construction to meet these increased needs. The Proposed Action is an element of the planned expansion. Design of the proposed project would be generally consistent with existing land use regulations. Because the proposed height of the medical office building would exceed the allowed 50 -foot height, a Conditional Use Permit (CUP) would be required. Traffic & Parking By 1995, the Proposed Action would generate an additional 4,040 vehicular trips on an average weekday with 169 of those trips occurring during the AM peak hour and 397 trips during the PM peak hour. The 1995 Level -of- service analysis shows degradation of LOS at several VMC driveways along Talbot Road S. Driveway #5 at S.W. 43rd St. currently operates at LOS "F" in the AM peak hour for eastbound left turn movements. This intersection is planned for right turn in, right turn out only operation with the approved tunnel L.I.D. Emergency vehicles will be allowed to turn left either to or from S.W. 43rd St. With completion of the tunnel in 1995, the driveway will improve to LOS C or better. Additional vehicular and pedestrian traffic associated with the project may increase the number of accidents in the immediate vicinity of the site. It is not expected that the overall accident rate or pattern of accidents would be altered significantly, because historically pedestrian and vehicular traffic accidents in this area have been minimal. L.I.D. construction, which is expected to begin in 1991, will enhance the safety of travel between north and south campus. Valley Medical Center is presently well served by Metro transit service; no expansion or service revisions are expected. 10 Valley Medical Center's existing Transportation Management Plan is being re- evaluated in light of this project. The Proposed Action would increase overall campus parking demand by approximately 385 stalls to a total of 1,899 parking spaces. The Ambulatory Care Center relocation and consolidation is not expected to change existing parking demand associated with this facility. Future parking demand generated by the Proposed Action can be accommodated by existing facilities on the VMC campus. In addition, Conditional Use approval has recently been granted by the City of Renton to Valley Medical Center for expansion of the existing parking garage by 800 spaces (total 1,100 spaces) - in order to meet existing and future demand on campus. .Construction of this parking garage expansion is scheduled to begin in 1991 with completion prior to occupancy of the proposed Medical Office Building II. Public Services - Fire During construction, the proposed project could temporarily increase the potential for fire and obstruction to fire fighting equipment, as a result of construction materials and debris, on- site movement of constructiion equipment and on -site construction - related traffic congestion. The long term impact of the project on the Renton Fire Prevention Bureau would be an increased demand for fire protective services (life and property protection). In an effort to lessen the overall demand for fire services at the campus, VMC and the Renton Fire Protection Bureau are developing a plan and schedule for retrofitting those areas of the existing hospital which are not sprinklered. The plan will be completed prior to any further major construction on campus. Because the site would remain undeveloped with the No Action alternative, no direct or indirect fire service impacts would be expected. Alternatives 2 & 3 are not expected to result in fire service impacts which are substantially different from those noted for the Proposed Action. 11 D. MITIGATION MEASURES o It is expected that for those intersections that are already at LOS F, VMC together with other developers in the area would pay their fair share of needed improvements. o Continuation and re- evaluation of Valley Medical Center's Transportation Management Plan. o Contribution of a Traffic Impact Mitigation Fee, based on the increase in traffic generated by the Proposed Action. o Project design in compliance with the requirements of the Renton Fire Prevention Bureau. o Development of a plan and schedule by VMC and the Renton Fire Prevention Bureau to retrofit those areas of the hospital which are not sprinklered. The plan will be completed prior to any further major construction on campus. E. SIGNIFICANT IMPACTS THAT CANNOT BE MITIGATED o Reduction in LOS for certain intersections in the vicinity of the VMC. A small portion of this LOS reduction would be attributable to the Proposed Action. o Increased demand on the Renton Fire Protection Bureau for fire protective services. 12 SECTION II PROJECT DESCRIPTION and ALTERNATIVES 13 14 o the Master Plan estimated the 1985 population of the service area to be approximately 500,000 and projected the 1990 service area population increase based upon growth characteristics which had occurred to that time. 15 ONX4 1� I1 v4Pk tr. �"• r .. .: ); imernium agobibLI r M a : `e,n�eI �I � ► pram • Imre ,v WM MOM r I �...rI $1,4 SHI SG T sn «visa f21o5rLL ft or galt fi'11 1�1' ya `` • 222 5051110 mlGNrr 150u5t1115L 2422 1Q. QUOIT =OVUM 2 Coot Nos stow Woo ..t Highlands 245101 124 12001/242 24'1001. 000 515/5 02RCl2t m11R 5150 511[1 124u31 umar 01 511211 m elt • V l 1 169 IOSL000 CCU 22. RO1a 512.4222201 r Maplew O N 55 ,.1110 M , ~ " p J LI f551552J i t 51i "1 51 3, W tor Hills } } son Hill 124., .2 2242122 '.Boulevard 1.1 Lane w yr 0 Y 1. IND 5l r n 7 i IOO 2 XOOX 7\ 5.15r af • .. • Iry o fV \7tatershed=I !I SS 9 IA maw S\ Forts Trail • Y FIGURE 1 VICINITY MAP NII{Res,N� 16 FIGURE 2 CAMPUS PLAN Nu�llles,h� 17 kik; Ask, It 18 The overall mission of the Hospital District (and Valley Medical Center) is to: "assure the health care needs of people living and working in its principal service area are met, and are met in a manner which promotes: o High quality care o Appropriate use of resources o Cost - effective delivery of services" (Valley Medical Center, 1989) King County Public Hospital District Number 1 provides a broad range of health care services and programs, all of which are located on the 42 -acre campus of Valley Medical Center. Key programs include: o Acute Care Needs o Ambulatory Care Center o Cardiopulmonary Services o Coronary Care Unit o Emergency Services o Endoscopy Department o Intensive Care Unit o Laboratory (clinical and pathology) o Nuclear Medicine o Obstetrics o Psychiatric Services o Radiation Oncology o Radiology /ultrasound o Surgicenter The Hospital District (VMC) employs a total of approximately 1,700 people on a 3- shift /day operating schedule. Of these, approximately 359 are staff physicians representing 22 medical specialties and subspecialities. Table 1 provides a comparison between 1989 and 1984 statistics (most current five -year data). As shown, the Hospital's outpatient surgeries have increased by 83 %, births by 73% and emergency visits by 59 %. Total patient days and admissions have increased by 7% and 20% respectively. The average length of hospital stays has declined, indicating that Valley Medical Center is servicing more people in shorter patient stays than in 1984. 19 Parameter Table 1 HOSPITAL OPERATIONAL STATISTICS - 1989 & 1984 1989 1984 % Change o total patient days 69,901 65,077 +7 o admissions 16,143 13,411 +20 o emergency visits 50,000 31,409 +59 o outpatients referred (visits) 55,500 37,124 +49 o live births + equivalent deliveries 3,360 1,947 +73 o average length of stay (days) 4 33 4.85 -11 o outpatient surgeries 8,022 4,393 +83 Source: Valley Medical Center 2. Valley Medical Center Campus As shown in Figure 2, eight buildings are located on the campus of Valley Medical Center, with a total building area of approximately 930,650 sq. ft. Data (actual counts) for each building is provided below. a. Hospital o 3- story, 651,000 sq. ft. of gross floor area o licensed for 303 beds; 296 existing o staff: day shift - 580 to 600 /day swing shift - 190 to 200 /day night shift - 85 to 110 /day b. Talbot Professional Center o principal use: medical offices o 5- story, 100,000 sq. ft. of gross floor area o staff: 180 to 200 /day (including doctors) c. Chin Hills Building o principal use: medical offices o 4- story, 48,000 sq. ft. of gross floor area o staff: 180 to 200 /day (including doctors) d. Psychiatry Wing o 2- story, 52,000 sq. ft. of gross floor area (18,000 sq.ft. shelled but unoccupied at this time) o staff: included in Hospital total e. Warehouse o principal use: warehouse, purchasing & data processing o 1- story, 8,900 sq. ft. of gross floor area o staff: day shift - 14 /day night shift - 1/day f. Parking Structure o 3 1/2 level, 62,000 sq. ft., 298 -car capacity o Conditional Use Permit #00689 has recently been approved to allow expansion of this parking structure by 800 spaces (total - approximately 1,100 spaces). Construction will start in 1991 and be completed prior to occupancy of the proposed Medical Office Building II. g. Radiation Oncology Center o principal use: examination and treatment o 1- story, 4,800 sq. ft. of gross floor area o staff: 7 - 8 /day h. Medic Services o principal use: emergency medical dispatch o 1- story, 3,950 sq. ft. o staff: 4 each for the day /swing /night shifts Several master planning documents have been prepared by Valley Medical Center to guide future campus development. The two most recent plans include: the Master Site Plan and Functional Program (Mahlum & Nordfors, 1987) and the 5 -year Strategic Plan (Valley Medical Center, 1988). The Proposed Action is a functional element that was planned for in both of these documents. The purpose of the Master Site Plan and Functional Program is to provide a physical development scheme to meet anticipated growth requirements of VMC to the year 2005. The study examines population characteristics and projected growth within King County Public Hospital District Number 1; evaluates historic service demands for key departments based on one or more parameters (e.g., patient days, #beds, length of stay, visits); projects future space needs by department; identifies development zones within the north and south campus areas; and identifies renovation and new on- campus space needs to 2005. 21 The 5 -year Strategic Plan examines the programmatic and facility changes necessary within the short term (1989 - 1993) at Valley Medical Center. Seven key operational concerns are considered, including: o potential new programs; o campus development; o marketing; o human resources; o data processing and computer services; o medical staff relations; and o finance. Recent development which has occurred on campus, as well as the Proposed Action presented in this draft EIS, are intended to implement the planning direction provided by these two documents. 22 C. NEED FOR PROJECT AND PROPONENT'S OBJECTIVES King County Public Hospital District Number 1 proposes to build a new medical office building and to relocate and consolidate functions'of the existing Ambulatory Care Center. This proposal is in response to a growing demand for certain services on the Valley Medical Center campus. Table 1 (page 16) presents statistical information relative to recent growth in services at VMC. The needs that this proposal is responding to are described below: Office Space The existing Talbot Professional Center and Chin Hills Building on campus are fully occupied; both are medical office buildings containing a total of approximately 148,000 sq. ft. Valley Medical Center indicates that there is a shortage of high quality professional medical office space, comparable to that of Talbot Professional Center and the Chin Hills Building, located in close proximity to the Hospital (Scott, 1990). This is based on conversations between representatives of the Hospital and physicians (specialists and sub - specialists) trying to find office space in the area. A new medical office building connected to the Hospital would provide professional office space for specialists and sub- specialists who need to be near their patients, other specialists and the specialized facilities provided by the Hospital. Education An expanded educational facility is needed for continuing medical education of doctors, nurses and technical support staff. During February and March, 1990, 52 professional educational programs were offered as part of medical staff continuing education. Valley Medical Center also offers 50 on -going educational /support programs (such as the Alzheimer's Support Group, CPR classes and the Head Injury Foundation) and provides free, on- the -job training services for 30 schools across the country. This latter program provides hands -on technical training (several students at a time) from such facilities as Renton Voc.- Tech. Ambulatory Care The Hospital's existing ambulatory care program provides comprehensive acute rehabilitation including: physical and occupational therapy, children's therapy, speech /language and neuroevaluation (EEG). Increases in existing ambulatory care services and changes in standards of treatment have created increased demand for additional space. Physical therapy and occupational therapy services alone have grown by 40% over the past four years. Existing Ambulatory Care Center facilities were established in 1969. Relocation and consolidation would allow more efficient delivery of services. 23 In response to growth in demand for medical services, VMC has identified a need to provide additional office space on campus and to relocate and consolidate some existing functions. The applicant's objectives for the major components of the project are described below. Medical Office Building General Goals serve the health care needs of a growing population; o meet community needs by providing a convenient location for patients to see their physicians proximate to the hospital -- in order to minimize travel time and distance for patients and reduce the number of medical /hospital - related vehicular trips in the area; o remain competitive with other hospital facilities in the Puget Sound region, and emulate the model established by major U.S. health care facilities, by encouraging physician specialists to locate proximate to major health care centers -- in order to provide greater efficiency in the delivery of services, help keep medical - related costs down and reduce traffic and parking impacts; Services /Facilities Goals o improve accessibility to the emergency room (one of the largest in the Northwest) for physician specialists, who establish their practices in the vicinity of Valley Medical Center and require expedient access to the emergency room, by providing rentable medical office space in a new medical office building on the campus of Valley Medical Center, adjacent to the Hospital; o meet the expanding educational needs of the medical staff at the hospital, and the increasing needs for community continuing health -care education (health education, wellness classes, and birth classes) by providing additional space which includes an auditorium, classrooms and kitchen facilities (in support of the auditorium and classrooms) in a new medical office building on the campus of Valley Medical Center; Locational Goals o situate the medical office building so that it relates functionally with Talbot Professional Center, Valley Medical Center Hospital and the Valley Medical Center parking garage and provides convenient and unincumbered (handicap accessible) pedestrian connections between the facilities; 24 site the medical office building in a location on the Hospital campus which does not inhibit future Hospital expansion; Circulation /Parking Goals o facilitate pedestrian traffic flow between the Valley Medical Center parking garage, Talbot Professional Center and the Hospital through elevated, covered and level walkways for the benefit of infirm individuals and to minimize on- campus pedestrian /vehicular traffic conflicts; o maximize the use of existing covered parking facilities and create and plan for the development of future parking facilities on the campus to meet the future needs of Valley Medical Center; Design Goals o maximize the use of the Hospital's property and minimize lot coverage by developing a high -rise office structure; o orient the medical office building on the site so that views from Talbot Professional Center are not substantially impaired and vehicular traffic circulation on the Valley Medical Center campus is not adversely affected; o design the medical office building to complement the architectural character of existing buildings on the campus and enhance the campus -like setting; Operational Goals o permit hospital expansion through a lease arrangement which does not draw on the capital needs of the Hospital -- for example, a possible ground lease to a partnership of physicians with the physicians building, owning and operating the building; and 25 mind. o provide expansion space for existing services on campus including: Cardiac Rehab Services, Cardiopulmonary Services, Social Services, Human Services and Admitting Satellite Services. Ambulatory Care Center o locate the ambulatory care facility in a central location on the Hospital campus and in a larger space in order to consolidate related functions and provide more efficient delivery of services; The Proposed Action has been framed with these objectives in D. DESCRIPTION OF PROPOSED ACTION The Proposed Action involves two major elements: construction of a medical office building and relocation and consolidation of the ambulatory care center. Each component is described below. 1. Medical Office Building II: Building Siting and Uses The proposed medical office building with connecting skybridges (connecting to Talbot Professional Center and Valley Medical Center parking garage) would be constructed in the northwest portion of the Valley Medical Center campus (Figure 2). The building would be located on approximately a one -half acre site north of the Psychiatry Wing, west of Talbot Professional Center and south of the parking structure (Figure 4). The building would be oriented in an east -west direction and separated by approximately 50 feet from Talbot Professional Center. 26 Psychiatry Wing Hospital (new location for Ambulatory Care Center is in the lower level) • Existing Buildings Proposed Buildings o 40' 80' Talbot Professional Center MAHLUM & NORDFORS ARCHITECTURE • FACIIiTY RMrwG • INTERIORS 250S Third Are .. Sad.. WA 98121 • 12061 441.4151 FIGURE 4 SITE PLAN 27 The total gross square footage in the proposed medical office building would be approximately 110,970 sq. ft. and the net leaseable area would be approximately 103,270 sq.ft. The 7,700 sq.ft. difference between gross and net areas is based on the Building Owners and Managers Association (BOMA) area calculation methodology. Based on this, gross floor area includes the area of the entire building shell, measured to the exterior of all exterior walls. Net leaseable or rentable area, based on BOMA, excludes such areas as the exterior walls, stairways, elevator and mechanical shafts, and permanent mechanical and electrical rooms which serve the entire building. The following are proposed building areas based on the gross floor area and net leaseable area by floor: floor 1 2 3 4 5 roof TOTAL gross floor area net leaseable 21,594 sq.ft. 20,988 22,846* 22,326 22,326 886 110,966 sq.ft. 19,404 sq.ft. 19,844 21,963 21,165 21,165 0 103,271 sq.ft. * includes both skybridges totaling 1,296 sq.ft. It is proposed that the first floor of the 5 -story medical office building be devoted to hospital - related uses and the upper four floors leasable space for physicians. While the design of actual Hospital - related space on the first floor has not been finalized, it is expected that uses and leaseable areas would include the following: o a 200 -seat auditorium (1,820 sq.ft.); o auditorium support storage (780 sq.ft.); o offices (education and learning center - 4,250 sq.ft.); o meeting rooms (5,520 sq.ft.); o kitchen in support of the meeting rooms (660 sq.ft.); o storage (1,850 sq.ft.); o corridor, lobby, coat room (3,050 sq.ft.); and o restrooms, mechanical space & stairwell (1,874 sq.ft.). It is anticipated that the leased space on the upper floors of the medical office building (approximately 83,867 sq.ft.) would be used as offices, clinics or laboratories -- similar to that at Talbot Professional Center. 28 Access and Parking The proposed medical office building would be accessible from several locations. Two pedestrian entrances are proposed for the south facade of the building -- the westerly entry would provide access to the first floor and the easterly entry would access the second floor (Figure 5). In addition, two enclosed pedestrian bridges are proposed (Figure 4). One bridge would link the third level of the existing parking structure to the third floor of the new medical office building. The other would connect the third floor of the proposed medical office building to the first floor of Talbot Professional Center. Since Talbot Professional Center is already connected to the Hospital by a tunnel, the proposed skybridge would provide direct pedestrian access (covered) from the proposed medical office building to the Hospital. Parking for 38 vehicles (32 standard and 6 handicap) is planned for the area immediately south of the proposed medical office building and north of the existing Psychiatry Wing (Figure 4). Since this area currently provides parking for approximately 50 vehicles, the net change would be a loss of approximately 12 spaces from this portion of the campus. The new parking area would be accessible from VMC's other parking lots in the area and from the internal ring roadway (Figure 2). Service vehicle access to the building would be from the north side of the building. One loading dock is proposed, accessible from the existing internal circulation road. This loading access lane is not expected to interfere with existing traffic circulation in the area. Building Design The medical office building would continue existing design themes found in other buildings on the VMC campus. This includes the use of similar material for the facade, similar facade color and the use of stepped setbacks at key corners of the building. Figures 6 and 7 present elevations of each facade. Specifically, the exterior of the building is expected to be a synthetic stucco -like material off -white in color with light gray accents. Glazing would be blue -green tinted and insulated glass (same as Talbot Professional Center) to reduce energy consumption. The glass would not be highly reflective (in the range of 8 to 20 percent). As shown by Figure 8, the top of the parapet would be approximately 70 feet above the finish elevation of the first floor. A rooftop mechanical penthouse ( 32 ft. x 110 ft. - including the elevator penthouse) could extend above the parapet approximately 9 feet. 29 Talbot Professional Center. MAHLUM & NORDFORS AMOVECTURE 4V= PIAMING • INTERCRS nos nod Paw.. S. WA ISM • Me FIGURE 5 PROPOSED MEDICAL OFFICE BUILDING AS VIEWED FROM THE SOUTHWEST 30 70 ft.— 0� _I1._I• M I=.I 10 111■ /1.ILr' -■.II 1... ■..11.m= M 11111 ®1.1 -...111=== .nu.rAIIIIIII -11•1111111 Ill Talbot Professional Center 111 1111 11111lOrl 111 ,- Imo .1= Milli 6=T=111 Imom 1 1 1111 cs 1 I.mommessmon 1211 112111 rAMEZZE — «– .c,===mmr,.lU..1.l 1122111 1111111.11 I® li • SOUTH ELEVATION 111111 Hp, Talbot Professional Center ett lnatu 1111 MIS I= R .1 L.Vii.. nl 1 - 215∎11`•liia ,111.= �1. 1111�1r..!■!!' I 11 •1 .1111�0�1■l ■ G ■ En -m_ 11731 Pi& WEST ELEVATION 1■ ' 1111 1. R Psychiatry Wing Q !ZEELCC Ci. MAHILIM & NORDFORS R. *110211C1111• 610.12221.~C • Nr82021 13011 MEI haw. Loft VW WIT • OM 4.0•4147 FIGURE 6 SOUTH & WEST ELEVATIONS 31 Talbot Professional Center 1 1 i. • -- MINV.n1 nu nsmor fr .resat I___I_I Ii unlu1�i�i NORTH ELEVATION 11■■■r11■ 11■■■r411■ ■■■ ■■■ MEM a 111 1111 1 1.11 1 111 1 111 1 EAST ELEVATION MAFiI. JM & NORDFORS NWEEIU I• MOInNMaV+G • Nfeatars am Tad Alma • _____ MAINZ' •mr.....51 FIGURE 7 NORTH & EAST ELEVATIONS Ass* k ■ 32 70 ft. U I1,bI SECTION OIL'S 10 go MAHLUM & NORDFORS NIOCECRAE• IAcunr'MMHG • MEIEGRS Z1Oi flits AiwYL Swat NN 1111121 •OOY 4414151 FIGURE 8 CROSS- SECTION OF PROPOSED MEDICAL OFFICE BUILDING AS VIEWED LOOKING EAST Nu�'II{R,I� 33 Landscaping While a detailed landscape plan has not been prepared at this time, VMC indicates that landscaping is proposed for planting areas along the south, west and north facades of the building. The area of the north facade is already landscaped with lawn, dwarf spiraea, compact Oregon grape and English ivy. The largest concentration of landscaping would likely occur along the building's south facade, because of the greater expanse of area. Figure 5 shows an artist conception of this landscape area. A sidewalk around the loop of the access drive would provide access to the existing stairway which leads to the fountain. The stairway is flanked by English ivy, boxwood and rhododendrons. The fountain is located between Talbot Professional Center and the Psychiatry Wing. Existing Uses The site of the Proposed Action is currently surface parking (approximately 50 spaces) with landscaped planting strips. All existing parking would be removed for construction and staging; 38 spaces would be replaced. Construction Construction of the medical office building would require a limited amount of demolition (surface parking) and grading. It is estimated that approximately 6,350 cubic yards of material would have to be excavated for the first floor of the building. The medical office building would be connected to existing utilities in this portion of the north campus area. All existing surface parking on the site (approximately 50 spaces) would be temporarily affected by construction, construction equipment and the stockpiling of materials. It is expected that loss of parking at this location during construction would be accommodated at other parking areas on the north or south campus, since this parking area is normally fully utilized. 2. Ambulatory Care Center: Siting and Design The other major element of the Proposed Action involves relocation and consolidation of the existing Ambulatory Care Center. As previously noted, ACC provides comprehensive acute rehabilitation including physical and occupational therapy, children's therapy, speech /language and neuroevaluation (EEG). Increases in existing ACC services and changes in standards of treatment have created increased demand for additional space. The Proposed Action would involve the relocation of ACC from the first and second floors of the Hospital (approx. 7,300 sq. ft.) to the lower level of the existing Psychiatry Wing. The lower 34 level consists of approximately 18,000 sq. ft. of undeveloped (shell) space, of which approximately 85% to 90% would be usable space for ACC. The existing facade of the lower level of the Psychiatry Wing would be altered to include glazing. Glass and spandrel panels would be the same grey tint currently used on the first floor of this building. Relocation of the Ambulatory Care Center from the first and second floors of the Hospital would make approximately 7,350 sq. ft. available for expansion of other existing services. According to VMC, no new services are anticipated. Planned changes include: o Cardiac Rehab Services and Cardiopulmonary Services would expand into the space currently occupied by the Physical Therapy Department; o Cardiopulmonary Services would also occupy the former EMG space and the existing office of the director of Rehab Services; o Social Services would expand into the former Speech and Hearing Office; o Human Services would expand into the space formerly occupied by Occupational Therapy; o Admitting Satellite Services would occupy the former Rehab Services Office; and o The existing shared therapy office would be utilized as expansion space for other existing services. Access Primary access to the Ambulatory Care Center would be from a new entry located at ground level in the northeast corner of the building (accessible from the proposed parking area). An elevator and stairway would connect the ACC to the first floor of the Psychiatry Wing, which has direct pedestrian connections to the Hospital and Talbot Professional Center. The first floor of the Psychiatry Wing is used for voluntarily committed psychiatric patients. On occasion, Valley Medical Center will temporarily hold involuntarily committed psychiatric patients awaiting transfer to a more secure facility. VMC indicates that there will be no contact between patients and staff of the new Ambulatory Care Center on the lower level and psychiatry patients on the first floor. To ensure this separation, VMC would implement the following security measures as an element of the Proposed Action: o design the facility so that part of the Psychiatric Unit can be locked -down to retain patients until transfer to a more secure facility; 35 o the elevator and adjacent stairs which would lead to the proposed ACC on the lower level are located in an existing public area on the first floor which is outside of the Psychiatric Unit; o the public area would be constantly monitored (by nursing personnel) and access to the Psychiatric Unit controlled by keypad entry or a remote door release signal from the nurse stations; o the two stairways located in the Psychiatric Unit (not the stairway located in the public area) would be armed to sound an alarm whenever the doors are opened; and o the two stairways located in the Psychiatric Unit would exit to the exterior of the Psychiatry Wing with no direct connection to the proposed ACC. E. ALTERNATIVES. Alternative 1 - No Action This alternative would involve no immediate changes to either the north or south campus areas. The site of the Proposed Action would remain as surface parking. No development involving office space, auditorium, classrooms or other elements associated with the Proposed Action would occur in this area of the campus. Demand for this type and magnitude of development would, however, remain. This could intensify pressure for development and /or redevelopment of other areas on campus or off -site property adjacent to the campus. This alternative would not satisfy any of Valley Medical Center's objectives for the project. 36 Alternative 2 - Reduced Scale Development This alternative, while similar in concept to the Proposed Action, would reduce the scale of the medical office building. The smaller medical office building would be four stories high and contain approximately 87,750 sq. ft. of gross floor area, of which it is estimated 82,100 sq. ft. would be net rentable. The amount of net leasable area for physicians (floors 2 through '4) would be 62,700 sq. ft. and the first floor hospital- related use would likely remain the same as the Proposed Action .(approximately 19,404 sq. ft. net rentable). Most other elements of this alternative -- including location on the campus, access, building orientation, design concept, landscaping and hospital - related use of the first floor -- would remain the same as the Proposed Action. Like the preferred alternative, construction of this alternative would require reconfiguration of the existing parking area with provision for a total of 37 spaces. The Ambulatory Care Center, however, would still relocate and consolidate its operations in the lower level of the existing Psychiatry Wing. While this alternative would satisfy many of Valley Medical Center's objectives for this project, it would not "maximize the use of the Hospital's property and minimize lot coverage by developing a high -rise office structure." A reduction in the amount of square footage of office space for this alternative could result in the need for additional medical office development elsewhere on -site (or off -site) in order to meet estimated market demand. This alternative could accelerate the need for development and /or redevelopment in other areas of the campus or adjacent off -site property, in order to meet the demand for office space adjacent to the Hospital. Alternative 3 - Relocated Medical Office Building (South) This alternative, depicted in Figure 9, would involve siting the proposed medical office building on a portion of the 10 -acre segment of the Valley Medical Center campus located south of S. 43rd St. As with the Proposed Action, the Ambulatory Care Center would relocate and consolidate its operations in the lower level of the existing Psychiatry Wing. The bulk and scale of the medical office building would likely be the same as that of the Proposed Action -- approximately five stories in height with 110,970 sq. ft. of gross floor area and approximately 103,270 sq. ft. net rentable area. Of the total rentable area, it is estimated that approximately 83,170 sq. ft. would be leasable space on the upper floors (2 through 5) for medical offices. 37 SW 43rd St N o 100' POSSIBLE BUILDING LOCATION - SOUTH CAMPUS ALTERNATIVE Nu'II{A�aa'�,I� 38 Uses contained within a medical office building at this location would probably be the same as those included in the Proposed Action. The first floor would likely be dedicated to Hospital - related uses (such as an auditorium, classrooms and education offices) with the upper four floors used as leasable space for physicians. Because of the northeast - southwest alignment of Davis Avenue South and the north -south configuration of the property in this portion of the campus, the medical office building could be oriented in almost any direction (depending upon which lots are utilized). Figure 9 depicts one possibility. Architectural design and associated design elements would likely be the same as that of the Proposed Action. Access to the building would be from Davis Street South. Davis Street S. is currently accessible from S. 43rd Street. By 1991 this south portion of the campus will be connected to the north campus via a tunnel beneath S. 43rd St. (Figures 2 & 9). The tunnel is an improvement proposed by Valley Medical Center and funded through an L.I.D. Design is complete; and construction is scheduled to begin late - 1990. The tunnel will provide an alternative point of access to the north campus, thereby eliminating the need for a left turn from S. 43rd St. at the existing driveways. The L.I.D. also includes the widening of S. 43rd St. from Talbot Road S. to SR 167, the addition of an HOV lane, and revisions to the traffic signals at S. 43rd St. and SR 167. Most of the south campus is presently undeveloped. An area south of S.W. 43rd Street and west of Davis Street S. is currently used as surface parking for day -shift employees. A medical office building at this location, depending upon actual siting, could displace the 220 existing surface parking spaces and generate demand for an additional 250 -300 employee and patient spaces in this area of the campus. These effects are not expected to be significant, however, because the south campus is presently undeveloped and existing employee parking and new employee /patient parking generated by a building at this location could probably be accommodated elsewhere on the south campus. This alternative would not affect the existing 50 surface parking spaces at the north campus location. While meeting most of Valley Medical Center's objectives, this alternative would not satisfy any of VMC's specific objectives regarding location or circulation, i.e. it would not be connected to Talbot Professional Center or the parking garage; it would not provide the required pedestrian linkages; and it would not maximize use of the existing parking structure. 39 SECTION III AFFECTED ENVIRONMENT, SIGNIFICANT IMPACTS and MITIGATION MEASURES 40 SECTION III AFFECTED ENVIRONMENT, SIGNIFICANT IMPACTS and MITIGATION MEASURES A. LAND USE 1. Land Use Patterns /Views Affected Environment Land Use Valley Medical Center is located in Renton's Talbot Hill /Springbrook neighborhood. This neighborhood covers an area of approximately 2.1 sq. miles and extends from 1-405 to the southern boundary of the City (S. 55th St.), and from SR 167 to Benson Road S. /108th Ave. S.E. The Talbot Hill /Springbrook neighborhood is bordered on the south and east by unincorporated King County. The Valley Medical Center campus encompasses approximately 42 acres. As indicated by Table 2, roughly 10% of the site is devoted to buildings and 26% to parking and access driveways. Approximately 63% of the north and south campus area is landscaped or undeveloped land. Although developable, approximately 8 of the 10 acres comprising the south campus area remain undeveloped with the balance of roughly 2 acres in internal streets. Approximately 18 acres (principally located in the northwest and southeast corners of the north campus) are landscaped. Land Use TABLE 2 EXISTING PATTERN OF LAND USES ON -SITE Approx. Acreage Approx. % of Total Site Hospital 2.05 4.84 Health Care- 2.51 5.93 Related Uses Parking /Internal 11.15 26.35 Streets Landscaped /Undev. Areas 26.61 62.87 TOTAL 42.32 acres 100.00% (rounded) 41 Areas noted in Table 2 for hospital and health -care related uses represent lot coverage. They do not indicate total gross floor area devoted to each particular use. The site of the Proposed Action (and Alternative 2) is presently utilized for surface parking. As shown in Figure 2, the pattern of on -site land uses immediately surrounding the site proposed for office building development on the north campus includes: structured parking north of the site; surface parking west, northwest, northeast and southwest of the site; professional office buildings east of the site and hospital /hospital - related medical buildings south and southeast of the site. Conditional Use Permit #00689 has recently been approved by the City of Renton to allow expansion of the existing parking structure by 800 spaces (total - approximately 1,100 spaces). Construction will start in 1991 and be completed prior to occupancy of the proposed Medical Office Building II. Currently, the northern 200 feet of the 10 -acre south campus (location of Alternative 3) is developed for use as day -shift employee parking (220 spaces). Approximately 80% of the remainder of the south campus is undeveloped with the balance in public rights -of -way (Davis Ave. S. and S. 45th P1.). As depicted by Figure 10, the character of land uses surrounding the campus of Valley Medical Center includes a mix of uses within three political jurisdictions -- Renton, King County and Kent. The general mix of land uses includes residential development at varying densities, professional offices and retail uses. Land uses north and northeast of the campus include undeveloped land, health care facilities and single family residential. Immediately north of Valley Medical Center is a steep and densely vegetated ravine associated with Panther Creek and its wetlands. This area is in the City of Renton. Panther Creek is a Class I Habitat with lands immediately adjacent to the creek designated as Habitat Buffer (King County. 1979. Soos Creek Plateau Communities Plan). The Class I designation means that the "habitat can be considered prime by almost any standard. It is extensive, largely undisturbed and generally well - buffered "(Ibid). The Habitat Buffer (considered a secondary habitat area) infers that the area is presently undeveloped and the buffer serves to protect the habitat from development. Panther Creek is also designated as a Type 3 Water based on its significance as habitat for anadromous fish spawning, rearing or migration (King County. 1987. Sensitive Areas Map Folio). 42 medical - related professional Immediately north of the ravine is a complex of medical and dental offices and a radiology facility. Single family residential is the predominant land use both north and northeast of the medical complex, with lot sizes varying from approximately 7,800 sq. ft. to several acres in area. The pattern of land use east of Valley Medical Center reflects a mix of land uses. Medical and dental professional offices, with several medically- related retail uses (i.e., eyeglasses), border Talbot Road from S.E. Carr Road to the Panther Creek drainage area (between S. 177th St. and S. 175th St.). Professional offices also extend from Talbot Road east to 98th Ave. S., along both the north and south sides of S.E. Carr road. Immediately east and north of this commercial development is a small single family residential neighborhood with large homes on 9,600 sq.ft. lots. Commercial and professional offices are located along both sides of Talbot Road, south of S.W. 43rd St. /S.E. Carr Road. Development extends approximately 1000 feet south of S.W. 43rd St. /S.E. Carr Road and includes 17 buildings with approximately 70 medical and dental practices. A large convalescent center borders this area to the south and east of Talbot Road S. Valley Medical Center's south campus adjoins this area. Immediately south of the south campus is a 337 -unit multifamily housing complex (Gatewood Apartments). Single family residences on large lots (2 -7 acres) are located south of the multifamily development, along both sides of Talbot Road S. Commercial uses (including retail and office space), light industrial development and warehousing are located west of SR 167 along East Valley Highway -- both north and south of S.W. 43rd St. Recent development in the general area is characterized by significant commercial and residential growth along Carr Road east of the site, in the vicinity of Benson Road S. /108th Ave. S.E., and further eastward; commercial and industrial growth west of the site, along S.W. 43rd St., west of SR 167; as well as recent growth associated with Valley Medical Center (Talbot Professional Center, Psychiatry Wing, and internal renovation). The existing inventory of medical office space surrounding Valley Medical Center totals 300,536 sq.ft. This includes: 135,161 sq.ft. of wood -frame medical office space (contained within 14 buildings) and 165,375 sq.ft. of Class "A" medical office space (within 3 buildings -- Chin Hills Building, Talbot Professional Center and Valley Gardens Health Center (Greg Werner, property appraiser, Lyon, Shelte & Speirs, telephone conversation, Aug. 1990). Class "A" space is typically newer construction, concrete or steel- frame, with ceiling heights of 8.5 to 9.0 feet. The existing vacancy rate within the Class "A" space is 11.7% and the vacancy rate within the wood -frame medical office space is 16.2 %. There is presently one known application pending for a development proposed in Renton and no known applications pending in Kent or King County (in the general vicinity of Valley Medical 44 Center) that could affect or be impacted by the Proposed Action. The Renton application is for a rezone from P -1 and R -3 to 0 -P to enable construction of a 30,000 sq.ft. office building. Also, a privately initiated comprehensive plan amendment with zone reclassifications is being prepared for a 430 -acre area south of the Hospital (City of Renton), however, no formal submittal has yet been received by the City. The comprehensive plan and rezone would be for more intensive development than is now allowed (low density single family residential). Views The only territorial views in the area are of portions of the Green River Valley west of the site. These views are seen several locations along Talbot Road S and S. 43rd St. A narrow, east -west view corridor presently exists across the north campus, in the vicinity of the entrance to the Chin Hills Building. This corridor extends roughly 230 feet along Talbot Road S., and is framed by the Chin Hills Building on the north and Talbot Professional Center on the south (refer to the impact section for plan and photo montage of the area affected). Significant Impacts of Proposed Action Land Use Implementation of the Proposed Action would change the use and character of the area in the immediate vicinity of site. Existing surface parking would be replaced with a 5 -story building, driveways and surface parking. As indicated by Table 3, the overall pattern of land use on the entire campus would change only slightly -- health - related land uses would increase from an existing 5.93% building lot coverage to approximately 7.09 %. Similarly, the amount of land area devoted to parking and driveways would decrease from 26.35% to 25.85% and landscaping /undeveloped areas would decrease from 62.87% of the site to 62.22 %. No change is expected with regard to the amount of site area devoted to the Hospital areas. 45 TABLE 3 FUTURE PATTERN OF LAND USES ON -SITE PROPOSED ACTION ALTERNATIVES 3 & 4 Land Use Approx. Approx. % of % Change Acreage* Total Site from Existing Hospital 2.05 4.84 Health Care- 3.00 7.09 Related Uses Parking /Internal 10.94 25.85 Streets Landscaped /Undev. Areas 26.33 62.22 TOTAL 42.32 100.00% no change + 1.16 % - 0.05 % - 0.65 % * Areas noted with regard to hospital use and health care related uses represent lot coverage. They do not indicate total gross floor area devoted to each particular use. Direct impacts on land uses at the VMC campus are not anticipated to be significant. Construction will involve excavation and removal of approximately 6,350 cubic yards of soil. Because the area immediately surrounding the project site is paved, no significant erosion control measures are necessary nor is any significant impact expected to occur with regard to the Panther Creek habitat. Although the Proposed Action would result in development of the site for more intensive uses, this level of development would be compatible with the character of existing land uses on -site. No significant land use impact is anticipated with regard to relocation and consolidation of the Ambulatory Care Center and in- filling of the space vacated by existing ACC programs. Indirectly, however, some impacts (notably traffic and parking) could occur as a result of the nature of uses proposed to be located within the project, including the addition of a 200 -seat auditorium and the mix of tenants in the medical office building. 46 The medical office building tenant mix could indirectly affect vehicular traffic and on -site parking demand. It is expected that the majority of physicians with practices that occupy office space in this building would be providers of specialized care, as compared with providers of primary care (i.e., family practice). As such, they would need to be located near their patients in the Hospital, near the Hospital's support facilities and near other professionals that provide specialized care. Once on -site, they would not generate additional vehicular trips or increased parking demand -- as compared with an off -site location. It is expected that the majority of travel on -site by these physicians and their support staff would be pedestrian traffic. The actual indirect land use impacts would depend on adjacent uses and their sensitivity to traffic. Development of the Proposed Action is not expected to generate significant land use impacts or conflicts. The proposed office building is generally compatible with other uses on the VMC campus. Similarly, the Proposed Action is not likely to have a significant effect on the character or rate of development occurring in adjacent areas in this portion of the City. Land use changes presently occurring are the result of overall growth in the area and throughout the region. The Soos Creek Subarea Plan is currently being revised by King County in an effort to re- evaluate the nature and intensity of future development patterns in this area of the County. It is expected that the Proposed Action would incrementally contribute to localized changes occurring in the area. At the same time, however, the Proposed Action would tend to capture some portion of future growth and focus it onto the VMC campus. This could have the effect of reducing the pressure for land use changes (e.g., for additional proximate office space) that might otherwise occur in areas adjacent to the campus. The tenant mix of the proposed project could also affect the occupancy rates of nearby medical office buildings. As noted previously, the existing vacancy rate in Class "A" space is 11.7% and the vacancy rate for wood -frame space is 16.2 %. It is expected that some physicians would move their practices from other nearby locations to become a part of the development resulting from this Proposed Action. Based on market research, Valley Medical Center projects an absorption rate of 30,000 to 40,000 sq. ft. per year consisting of the following types of practices: o cardiology o colon /rectal surgery o ear /nose /throat o general surgery o internal medicine o obstetrics /gynecology o pediatrics o vascular surgery The rate of absorption from these types of practices could temporarily increase vacancy rates in nearby medical office buildings. In the long term (6 -12 months), the net effect would depend on the future demand for medical office space in the area, 47 together with regional and local economic conditions. Historically, wood -frame space in the area has been occupied by 'smaller or newer practices, whereas the Class "A" space has been occupied by larger /expanding practices (Werner, 1990). The decision to invest at a time when vacancy rates are 11 or 16% would be an economic decision by the entrepreneur -- influenced, in part, by such factors as: o that portion of the market segment which is targeted (i.e., Class "A" space or wood - frame); o land costs and market rental rates for the targeted market segment -- both existing and projected; o the window of opportunity (economically, the most advantageous time for the product to enter the market); o the projected vacancy rate of the market segment during the window of opportunity; and o the availability of other sites in the area. Views As noted previously, the only territorial views in the area are of portions of the Green River Valley west of the site. The proposed medical office building would be below the height of Talbot Professional Center, as viewed from Talbot Road S. (Figure 11). As such, the building would not result in any further restriction of westerly views from viewpoints along Talbot Road S. located either east or southeast of Talbot Professional Center. The proposed medical office building as aligned would, however, restrict some westerly views from viewpoints along Talbot Road S. in the vicinity of the entrance to the Chin Hills Building; some westerly views from offices in Talbot Professional Center and the Chin Hills Building; and some north or northwesterly views from the Psychiatry Wing and the Hospital. The westerly view corridor which presently exists along Talbot Road S. in the vicinity of the entrance to the Chin Hills Building is depicted in Figure 12. This corridor extends roughly 230 feet along Talbot Road S., and is framed by the Chin Hills Building and Talbot Professional Center. While the site slopes in a westerly direction, westerly view impairment is expected, as indicated by Figure 13. The Proposed Action would not affect other existing westerly view corridors across the site or other territorial views in the area. 48 west Proposed Building M��11111111111111111Humus nIuII Talbot Professional Center .:("w.w..... rt.,.. w.. ..., .....w.,.... ..,.... e, .L`"iK..wxx..,Fa...........,. ....,.. .iw. n.....: ;iw..a, R. . ........ ..... .. .. ..........>....&".��a. 0 100' 200' FIGURE 11 SITE CROSS — SECTION 49 0 g ca k C H tzi E n 0 H G 0 Pi a Proposed Medical Office Building Location Z ....____ v L SW 43rd St Proposed Building tk Looking West (refer to Figure 12) Looking Northwest (refer to Figure 12) FIGURE 13 PROBABLE VIEW IMPACT AS SEEN LOOKING WEST FROM TALBOT ROAD S. h 51 Mitigation Measures: None required. Unavoidable Adverse Impacts: Undeveloped land would be developed for an intensive use. No unavoidable adverse land use impacts are expected. Impacts of Alternatives Alternative 1 - No Action The No Action alternative would result in the site remaining undeveloped. As such, no direct or indirect land use impacts are expected. Demand for additional medical office space will likely continue, however, resulting either in future development of this north campus site, a possible south campus location or an off - campus site. Development in the future would likely result in impacts comparable to the Proposed Action. Alternative 2 - Reduced Scale Development Alternative 2 (reduced scale) would result in the same general type of development but at a reduced scale. Impacts, at least in the short -term, would be generally the same as the Proposed Action, but at a lesser magnitude. Demand for medical office space in the long term, however, is expected to continue. If that demand is met through the provision of new facilities on the VMC campus, and those facilities are not maximized, a greater percentage of lot area could be developed for medical - related offices. It is possible that a smaller office building on campus could lessen any adverse impacts on nearby private medical office buildings (in terms of higher vacancy rates /longer lease up). If, however, the demand for professional medical office space continues and this demand is not met by an existing or proposed new facility on campus, development would likely occur off - campus with a similar impact on existing private medical office space in the area. The considerations for investment at a time when the medical office vacancy rate is 11 to 16% would be an entrepreneurial decision, as noted with regard to the Proposed Action. View corridor impact associated with this project is influenced primarily by building siting and less by building height. A reduction in height of one story would diminish but not eliminate the view corridor impact. The height of the parapet of a building resulting from this alternative would be at approximately the same level as the lowest level of glass in Talbot Professional Center, as depicted in Figure 13A. 52 Alternative 3 - Medical Office Building Relocated (South) Environmental impacts of Alternative 3 would generally be the same as those of the Proposed Action. The effect on the local medical office space market would also likely be the same as that of the proposal. Because of separation from the other major medical functions on the north campus, this alternative could hasten the need by VMC to develop the south campus. As indicated in Valley Medical Center's Master Site Plan (Mahlum & Nordfors, 1987), such south campus development could,include: additional medical office space, possible satellite operations of major functions provided on the north campus, relocation of certain north campus functions, or facilities to serve future health care needs. The north campus would likely be developed at some future date with additional hospital - related uses. The change in location of the office building under this alternative could also indirectly affect traffic and parking. Because of the separation from Talbot Professional Center and the Hospital, Alternative 3 could generate a significant amount of vehicular traffic between the north campus and south campus. As noted in the traffic analysis contained in this DEIS, traffic would utilize the proposed tunnel beneath S.W. 43rd St. and, therefore, result in no significant impact upon the surrounding street system or adverse effects on adjacent land uses. Also, this alternative would generate no additional traffic volumes at driveways #1 through #4 (refer to the Traffic section for detailed discussion). A medical office building at the south campus with significant operational ties to both Talbot Professional Center and the Hospital could also affect land use with regard to on -site parking. On -site parking (for physicians, employees, patients and visitors) would be provided at the south campus. However, additional parking would also be needed on the north campus to accommodate inter - facility requirements for staff, patients and visitors. An inter - campus shuttle could lessen this demand, but not eliminate it. This alternative would not affect the westerly view corridor as viewed from Talbot Road S. Depending upon siting, however, it could result in a southwesterly view impact from S.W. 43rd St. (Figure 14). 53 hUn1n1 FIGURE 14 PROBABLE VIEW IMPACT AS SEEN LOOKING WEST FROM TALBOT ROAD S. 54 2. Relationship to Existing Plans, Policies & Zoning. Comprehensive Plan City of Renton: Summary: The City of Renton's Comprehensive Plan, adopted in 1986, consists of a land use map element and a policies element. The primary purpose of the plan is to: o define and establish the policy relating to the development of the community as a whole; o indicate the principals and objectives which shall guide the establishment, development and implementation of definite and precise plans, public and private; o provide for the coordination of the many separate plans which govern the development of this community; o officially adopt a program and guide which will enable the City of Renton to attain the principles and objectives set forth in R.C.W. 35.63 of the Revised Code of Washington in the manner provided. The Comprehensive Plan Land Use Map delineates the general area of the site as Public /Quasi - public (Figure 15). Quasi - public uses are those "owned or operated by a nonprofit, religious or eleemosynary institution, and providing educational, recreational religious or similar type of public program" (Renton, 1983). The Proposed Action and Alternatives 2 and 3 are consistent with this designation. 55 LEGEND Zoning Renton: P -1 public use O-P office perk B-1 business use M-P manufacturing park G-1 general R-1 single family R-2 two family R 3 multifamily Zang County: RM -800 multifamily RM -1800 multifamily RM -2400 multifamily SR -7200 single family SR -8800 single family SR -1.000 single family Comprehensive Plan Designations Renton: mnc:rste�nrm000ati vasattzazmooe.xac public /quasi- public commercial medium density resid. single family greenbelt Zang County (Soos Creek Plateau): office single family 2-3 units /acre open space City /County boundary zoning designation boundary (approximate) N FIGURE 15 COMPREHENSIVE PLAN & ZONING 56 The policies element of the City's Comprehensive Plan contains general goals, objectives and policies. This element is intended to: o serve as a basis for revising the other elements of the Comprehensive Plan, and any new element adopted should be in conformance with the Policies Element; o interpret and clarify the other elements; and o address those areas that are not included in the other elements. The following Comprehensive Plan goals are applicable based on the medical - related nature of the proposed project and alternatives, as well as the commercial/ professional nature of the facility. Utilities Goal: "To ensure an adequate supply and equitable distribution of utility services." "B. Water Objective: An adequate water supply and distribution system should be assured." Policy: "1. An adequate supply of water with sufficient water pressure and flow for fire protection should be provided." Comment While the Proposed Action and alternatives would place additional demands on water supply, they are not expected to have any effect on the availability of water to serve the area. The Proposed Action would be designed to comply fully with City of Renton requirements for building and life safety. "C. Storm Water Objective: An adequate storm drainage system which minimizes the impacts on the natural drainage features should be assured." Policy: "3. New developments should be designed to provide for safe collection and discharge of runoff." 57 Comment To ensure permittability and City acceptance, the Proposed Action and alternatives would be designed and constructed to comply fully with City of Renton requirements for storm water runoff, both during construction and long term operation of the development. Such measures could include: o development of temporary (construction period) and permanent stormwater drainage control plans; o minimize the amount of soil exposed during construction; o hydroseed slopes that would be exposed for extended periods of time; o provide permanent landscaping as soon as practicable; o provide for permanent on -site storm water detention and biofiltration which could include flat slope underground detention pipes, grass -lined swales and oil /water separators. Community Facilities Goal: "To provide a broad range of community facilities and services." "A. Facilities Objective: Community facilities should be located, designed, constructed, and maintained to provide adequate and equitable service to all residents." "G. Health Care Facilities Objective: Adequate health care and social services should be available." Policies: "1. Hospitals should be located and designed to serve the residents efficiently." "3. A viable emergency health service should be maintained." Comment The Proposed Action and Alternatives 2 and 3 are a response to a need for additional professional medical office space on the Valley Medical Center campus. VMC's objective is to provide both adequate and efficient medical services, including emergency health care. Because of the proposed proximity to the Hospital and Talbot Professional Center, as well as the pedestrian linkages possible between these facilities and the existing parking garage, the Proposed Action may best achieve the City's policy relative to 58 other alternatives. The Proposed Action, as well as the alternatives, are consistent with maintenance of a viable emergency health service for the community. The Proposed Action and Alternatives 2 and 3 are generally consistent with the comprehensive plan's community facilities goals and policies. 59 Commercial Goal: "To promote attractive, convenient, viable systems of commercial facilities." "B. Commercial Structure and Sites Objective: Commercial structures and sites should be well- designed, constructed, and maintained." Policies: "3. Structures should be adequately set back and buffered from other uses." "4. Site plan design should provide for efficient and functional use of land." "5. Developments should be designed and maintained to avoid adverse impacts on adjacent properties." Comment Design and siting of the Proposed Action would provide adequate setback and buffering from other uses. Facility siting associated with the Proposed Action and Alternative 2 is intended to provide for the efficient and functional use of the site. Because of its location, the Alternative 4 (south campus alternative) would be less consistent with the policy for efficient and functional use of the site. Because of the internal location for the project, impacts on adjacent property owners as a result of siting and design would be minimized, other than perhaps the effect on the localized office market. Transportation Goal: "To promote a safe, efficient and balanced multi -modal transportation system." "A. Transportation Alternatives Objective: In order to reduce the impact of traffic congestion, alternatives to the single occupant automobile should be encouraged." "C. Streets Objective: Streets should be well designed, constructed, and maintained." Policy: "3. To maintain arterial streets for the primary purpose of traffic movement, access from abutting property should be minimized." 60 Comment Valley Medical Center has implemented a Transportation Management Plan which establishes a program to reduce single occupancy vehicle use where possible (refer to Transportation Section of this DEIS). Neither the Proposed Action nor any of the alternatives propose additional curb cuts from the VMC campus. Transportation Policies - Valley Plan: o "The number of access points on individual sites should be minimized." o "All parking, servicing, loading and unloading of vehicles should be only on- site." o "Alternatives to single- occupant vehicles should be encouraged -- especially in high employment areas of the Valley -- as development density increases." o "Developers should be encouraged to develop HOV (High Occupancy Vehicle) and transit usage incentives for large developments and for concentrations of high employment." Comment Neither the Proposed Action nor the alternatives will change the number of access points to the Valley Medical Center campus. All parking, . servicing, loading and unloading will occur on -site. Valley Medical Center has developed a Transportation Management Plan which promotes alternatives to the single- occupant vehicle. This Plan is being re- evaluated as a result of the Proposed Action. King County: Soos Creek Plateau Communities Plan Summary: The Soos Creek Plateau Communities Plan, adopted in 1979, delineates the preferred pattern of growth both for unincorporated King County and for peripheral incorporated areas. While the County has no direct jurisdiction for properties in incorporated areas, land use consistency is usually sought through interlocal agreements between the County and the effected city. Based on Renton's land use designation in effect at the time the Soos Creek plan was enacted, the Soos Creek plan depicts the site of Valley Medical Center's north campus and a small area north of the ravine as "community facility "; and the south campus area as "single family: 3 -4 units per acre ". Properties north of S.W. 43rd St., east of VMC's north campus and immediately east of Talbot Road S. are within unincorporated King County and are designated "office" (business and professional offices, medical and dental clinics). 61 King County has started a planning effort to update this subarea plan. It is expected that a preliminary draft of the policies (based on several possible development scenarios) will be available early Fall 1990 and possible zoning changes by late Fall. The Draft EIS associated with this new plan is scheduled to be issued in March 1991. Enactment of a new subarea plan could occur Fall 1991. Comment The Proposed Action and Alternative 2 are consistent with the County's existing plan designation for the site. Alternative 3 would be inconsistent in that medical office space would occur in an area designated by the Soos Creek Plan as single family. Zoning Summary: As indicated by Figure 15, the north campus portion of the project site is zoned P -1 (Public Use) and the south campus area is zoned O -P (Office Park). The intent of the P -1 classification is "to provide and protect suitable environments for social and physical services and facilities" (Renton, 1983). Public or quasi - public hospitals are considered government buildings which are principal uses permitted outright in the P -1 zone. Medical offices, accessory uses in separate buildings (possibly the Ambulatory Care Center) and /or buildings over 50 feet in height but less than 95 feet are considered conditional uses in the P -1 zone. The intent of the O -P zone is "to provide areas appropriate for professional, administrative, and business offices, certain manufacturing activities, and supportive services in a campus -like setting" (Ibid). Administrative and professional offices, medical and dental clinics business and professional services and research and development are principal uses permitted outright in the O -P zone. Table 4 outlines the development standards associated with each zoning classification. 62 TABLE 4 REY DEVELOPMENT STANDARDS Regulation Zone P -1 0 -P Height Setbacks - front: - rear: - side: - special: 50 ft 95 ft w /CUP 30 ft 10 ft 5 ft 20 ft from north property line Lot Coverage no limitations Comment no height limit 30 -60 ft 20 -30 ft 20 -30 ft 50 ft adj. to R -3 Design of the proposed project would be generally consistent with existing land use regulations noted in Table 4. As noted in the Description of the Proposed Action (contained in this DEIS) and as shown in Figures 6 and 8, the height of the top of the parapet would be 70 feet above the finish elevation of the first floor of the proposed medical office building. Because this proposed height exceeds the allowed 50 -foot height, a Conditional Use Permit (CUP) would be required. The proposed height of the parapet, as well as the height of the mechanical penthouse, would comply with the maximum height limit allowed in the P -1 zone with a CUP (95 feet). The City could impose conditions to mitigate impacts identified by this DEIS. 63 8. TRANSPORTATION AND PARKING 1. Affected Environment Street /Highway System The existing street /highway system in the vicinity of the Valley Medical Center is shown in Figure 16. Access to the site is provided from driveways on Talbot Road and South 180th, also known as S.W. 43rd Street. The following is a description of the arterials surrounding the study area. SR -167 (East Valley Freeway): SR -167 is a north - south, 4 -lane state route freeway, which is links Interstate 405 (two miles north of the site) with SR -515 and SR -18 south of the site. SR -167 has a posted speed limit of 55 m.p.h. A signalized intersection exists at the I -405 full diamond interchange. At this interchange, SR -167 serves an average daily traffic count (ADT) of 90,500 vehicles north of S.W. 43rd Street and 71,100 vehicles south of S.W. 43rd Street. At S.W. 43rd Street, SR -167 northbound on -ramps serve 10,100 ADT and south off - ramps serve 7,380 ADT. East Valley Road: East Valley Road is a north -south 5 -lane, 60 -foot wide arterial. It has a posted speed limit of 25 m.p.h. in the vicinity of S.W. 43rd Street. This arterial has an average daily traffic (ADT) volume of 17,902 south of S.W. 43rd Street and 22,184 north of S.W. 43rd Street. The intersection of East Valley Road and S.W. 43rd Street is a fully signalized 4- legged intersection. Access to East Valley Road from SR -167 (East Valley Freeway) is made from directly connecting off /on ramps at the signalized intersection on S.W. 41st Avenue. Five foot -wide sidewalks exist along East Valley Road, north of S.W. 43rd Street. South of S.W. 43rd Street, the East Valley Road tapers to two lanes and then widens out to three lanes with a two -way left turn lane. S.W. 43rd Street (South 180th Street) /Carr Road: S.W. 43rd Street is an east -west 5 -lane, 60 -foot wide principal arterial. This street has a posted speed limit of 35 m.p.h. for cars and 25 m.p.h. for trucks traveling eastbound on the incline between Talbot Road and East Valley Road. Fully signalized intersections exist on Lind Avenue S.W., East Valley Road, the northbound on- ramp /southbound off -ramp half diamond SR -167 interchange, the Talbot Road intersection and 98th Avenue South intersection (Figure 16). The roadway crosses above SR -167 between the East Valley Road 64 ON 01 and the site and serves as a vital link in this continuous east - west corridor through the Green River Valley. The ADT for S.W. 43rd Street East of Lind Avenue S.W. is 22,443 vehicles per day, and east of East Valley Road the ADT is 38,333 vehicles per day. Between the SR -167 on /off ramps and Talbot Road, the ADT is 34,611. East of Talbot Road, the ADT is 31,123. S.W. 43rd Street provides a major east -west link between large commercial and light industrial uses west of site (including Southcenter) and convenience shopping and residential uses east of the site. Five foot concrete sidewalks exist on both sides of S.W. 43rd Street and a five foot -wide planting strip buffers the walk from the roadway, except on the SR -167 overpass. Talbot Road South: Talbot Road is a four lane, 48 foot wide north -south collector arterial which connects to Highway 515 north of the site. Talbot Road has a posted speed limit of 25 m.p.h. and adjacent to the site has 5 foot -wide concrete sidewalks. A fully signalized intersection exists at the intersection of Talbot Road and S.W. 43rd Street. Traffic Volumes Automatic and manual turning movement counts were collected from the City of Renton Department of Public Works (DPW), Washington Department of Transportation, and King County. Figures 17 and 18 depict factored 1990 AM and PM peak hour turning movement traffic volumes at access driveways and the adjacent streets. The factoring process involved calibrating previous traffic counts to 1990 volumes, based on recent traffic counts on adjacent streets. A comparison of the total ADT and the PM peak hour counts shows that PM peak hour volumes represent between 9% and 12% of the daily volumes. Level of Service (LOS) A measure of the relative level of congestion can be made by calculating the Level of Service (LOS) at intersections. Traffic operations within the study area were analyzed with the use of the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) 1985 Highway Capacity Software. This program utilizes the techniques presented in the 1985 Highway Capacity Manual (HCM), and produces an LOS rating for each intersection based upon a scale ranging from LOS A (free flow conditions) to LOS F (forced flow or jammed conditions), with LOS E being capacity conditions. LOS D (tolerable delays at intersections) is usually considered adequate by the City of Renton for urban intersections (Clint Morgan, Renton Public Works - Traffic Div., meeting, July 1990). The 1985 HCM techniques account for such factors as poor signal 66 rn J c'3 0) Z CC J (0 N o N N h SW 41ST ST _ij` 42 VALLEY MEDICAL CENTER csi co JjL SW 147 819 —� 5 0) CO CO 1 1 330 1438 325 �"— 762 11r .00 ,o. ik . N 01; DWY #4 2J I�131 NN ton n L. 25 I 0 0 DWY #3 J 1 ` /r--- 8 S 177TH 33._J r 1 —+ 84Th N N 0 a DWY #2 J( 18 86 Th � N DWY #1 15 J )J 79 —) co op 04( 74 J 31 J 109 )1 188 _ J 1378 —0.- 217 co LJJ JI SOUTH CAMPUS 3__i 25 -� J 0i 0 to N 11 0* 0 21 CO JT 7 S 45TH PL r 686 r 57 1tf (0 0 m 50 J 47 CENTRAC FIGURE 18 1990 PM PEAK HOUR TURNING MOVEMENTS 68 progression, bus volumes, pedestrian conflicts, roadway geometries, parking maneuvers and other traffic - inhibiting factors. The LOS for signalized intersections is defined in the 1985 HCM in terms of delay, which indicates driver discomfort, frustration and lost travel time. For unsignalized intersections, LOS is based upon the concept of "reserve capacity ", i.e. the physical capacity remaining. The reserve capacity concept is applied only to an individual traffic movement (or shared -lane movement). Once the capacity of all the individual movements has been calculated and their LOS determined, an overall evaluation of the intersection can be made. Normally, the movement with the worst LOS defines the overall evaluation, but this may be tempered by engineering judgment. This is particularly true in cases where the most critical movement serves a very minor percentage of the total traffic entering the intersection. The LOS criteria used for this EIS analysis is shown in Table 5. Past experience with unsignalized analysis procedures indicates that this methodology is very conservative and tends to overestimate the magnitude of any potential problems. Therefore, the result of any unsignalized intersection analysis should be reviewed with this thought in mind. Existing PM peak -hour LOS at intersections analyzed in the vicinity of the proposed development are summarized in Table 6. Poor levels of service occur where high volume streets intersect, competing for the green phase of the signal by each movement or approach, and where there are heavy turning movements from minor streets onto high volume streets. Accident Experience Accident reports were gathered from the City of Renton Department of Public Works and Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT) Traffic Data Bank for the period of January 1, 1986 to December 31, 1988. Accident data was converted to an accident rate to compare high and low volume locations on an equal basis. The typical rate measure for intersection - related accidents is accidents per million entering volume (ACC /MEV). This rate is computed by taking the average annual number of intersection accidents, multiplying it by one million, and dividing by the product of the 24 -hour intersection entering volume times 365 days per year. 69 TABLE 5 LEVEL OF SERVICE CRITERIA FOR SIGNALIZED AND UNSIGNALIZED INTERSECTIONS Signalized Unsignalized Level of Stopped Delay Per Reserve Expected Delay Service Vehicle (seconds) Capacity Minor Street Traffic A < = 5.0 > = 400 Little or no delay B 5.1 to 15.0 300 - 399 Short delays C 15.1 to 25.0. 200 - 299 Average delays D 25.1 to 40.0 100 - 199 Long delays E 40.1 to 600 0 - 99 Very long delays F >60.0 * * * When demand volumes exceed the capacity of the lane, extreme delays will be encountered with queuing which may cause severe congestion affecting other traffic movements in the intersection. Source: 1985 Highway Capacity Manual 70 Intersection TABLE 6 LEVEL OF SERVICE SUMMARY Existing 1995 No Action (Alt. #1) 1995 With Expansion Proposed Action 1995 With Expansion Reduced Scale Development (Alt. #2) AM PM AM PM AM PM AM PM 1995 With Relocated Medical Office Building (South) (Alt #3) Dwy #1 /Talbot Rd. Dwy #2 /Talbot Rd. Dwy #3 /Talbot Rd.' Dwy #4 /Talbot Rd. Dwy #5 /S. 43rd St. Dwy #5 /S. 43rd St.2 S. 45th Place/ Talbot Road SR- 167 /SW 41st/ E. Valley Road SW 43rd Street/ Lind Avenue SW SW 43rd Street/ E. Valley Road S. 43rd Street/ Talbot Road S. S. 43rd Street/ SR -167 ON /OFF A A A B A D A C A A A A A B A B B B C B C C C C A A A A A A A A F C FD F D C3 B C B F F F C C C C D F D C B C F D F D F D F B B B B B B B F F F F F F F E F F F F F F F F F F F F F AM PM A B A A B C A A F D C B C C D F B B F F F F F F 1 This driveway was analyzed as a 4 -leg intersection with South 177th Street being the WB leg. 2 Emergency use only. 3 Right in /right out, EB light traffic would make a right turn onto Davis then access thru the proposed tunnel. 71 Table 7 summarizes the total number of accidents for this period at four locations, the average number of accidents for the 3 year period, and the rate of accidents per MEV. The pattern of accidents does not appear to be unusual in that the highest number of accidents tend to occur on those streets and intersections that are most heavily traveled. Yearly averages of approximately 10 or more are usually considered to be high accident locations. TABLE 7 ACCIDENT DATA (1/1/86 - 12/31/88) Intersectloq 12$¢ 1281 12 I Total Avg/Yr Acc/Mev East Valley Rd./ S.W. 41st St. 5 8 8 21 7.00 East Valley Rd./ S.W. 43rd St. 9 16 13 38 12.67 S.W. 43rd SL/ Lind Ave. S.W. 7 3 7 17 5.67 S.W. 43rd St./ Talbot Rd. S. 13 5 11 29 9.67 Transit Service Metro provides transit service throughout the study area. Route #155 runs all day (hourly) on S.W. 43rd Street with bus stops near the project site and at the intersection of Talbot Road and S.W. 43rd St. This route also connects with the Southcenter Park - and -ride. Routes #149 (every half hour AM and PM peak hour only) and 909 (9AM to 4PM, hourly) serve Talbot Road S. and the South Renton Park -n -Ride. Pedestrian /Bicycle Facilities During an afternoon field observation by CENTRAC in Spring 1990, a moderate level of pedestrian traffic and no bicycle activity was noted throughout the study area. The bulk of pedestrian activity is concentrated in and around VMC. Signalized crosswalks exist at most appropriate locations along all of the major roadways. There are no dedicated bicycle lanes in the vicinity of the project. Parking /Access Current access to VMC is via four driveways on Talbot Road S., one driveway on S.W. 43rd St., and via the outpatient drop -off area. The existing, internal on -site loop road (depicted in Figure 2) provides access from each of the driveways to all buildings on the north campus. 72 Authorized parking spaces are available at VMC for patient and employee use. The site currently has 1,688 parking stalls, with a calculated parking demand of 1,514 parking spaces (Jacobsen & Assoc., 1989). The parking study indicated that the parking garage and parking lots in the southwestern corner of the campus are currently underutilized by patients and visitors. As noted in the Description of the Project, the City of Renton recently authorized expansion of the existing parking garage in the northwest corner of the north campus. The expansion includes the addition of 800 parking spaces to the existing 298 spaces presently provided. Construction is expected to start in 1991 with completion prior to occupancy of the proposed Medical Office Building II. Planned Transportation Improvements VMC in conjunction with the City of Renton has committed to the construction of Local Improvement District (L.I.D.) #329. Construction is planned in late 1990 with completion scheduled in the Fall of 1991. As background, L.I.D. #329 was originally approved in 1982 for the widening of S.W. 43rd St. between the SR -167 on- and off -ramps and the Talbot Road intersection. VMC committed to participate in the L.I.D. at that time, as a mitigation measure for the Hospital's construction of the Radiation Oncology Center. A planned unit development of 12 medical office buildings, proposed for the site which is now VMC's south campus, had also agreed to participate in the L.I.D. -- as a traffic mitigation measure associated with that project. In 1987, VMC purchased the property of the proposed planned unit development (site of the existing south campus), thereby becoming the sole contributor to L.I.D. #329. Since that time, the Hospital has used the property for employee parking. It became apparent to VMC that increased pedestrian and vehicular traffic between the north and south campus could affect traffic flow on S.W. 43rd St. VMC recommended two proposals to the City for modification of the L.I.D. The first proposal involved construction of a pedestrian overpass above S.W. 43rd St. and the other proposal was for a tunnel beneath S.W. 43rd St. In subsequent meetings, the City indicated to VMC that one of the major reasons L.I.D. #329 had been delayed for several years was due to the City's concern that a new traffic light at the intersection of S.W. 43rd St. and Davis St. S. (as proposed in L.I.D. #329) could further impact traffic flow in this area. While a pedestrian overpass would improve pedestrian flow through this intersection, north and south campus -bound traffic would still be affected by traffic congestion at the intersection. 73 Representatives of VMC and the City selected the tunnel proposal because it was felt that a tunnel beneath S.W. 43rd St.: o would eliminate the proposed stop light at S.W. 43rd St. and Davis Ave. S., thereby improving the flow of traffic on S.W. 43rd St.; o provide excellent pedestrian access between the north and south campus, without the need to cross a major arterial street; and o a tunnel could more effectively incorporate the south campus into VMC's overall campus. As the sole contributor to L.I.D. #329, Valley Medical Center agreed to pay the additional $1.5 million cost for a tunnel. In addition to the tunnel, several other major local traffic improvements are included in this L.I.D. Three new traffic lanes will be added between the freeway ramps and Davis Avenue S. (one HOV lane, one left- and one right -turn channel to SR -167 ramps) and two new lanes between Davis Avenue S. through the Talbot Road intersection (one left- and one right -turn channel to Talbot Road). Another traffic lane will be constructed on Talbot Road South, north of S.W. 43rd St. to accommodate traffic from parking areas on the Hospital's north campus. In general, improvements constructed as part of L.I.D. #329 will upgrade traffic capacity on S.W. 43rd St. and the LOS at SR- 167 on /off ramps and the Talbot Road S. intersection. The LOS for the entrance to the Hospital campus off of S.W. 43rd St., which is currently utilized by emergency vehicles, will be significantly improved. In addition to planned L.I.D. #329 improvements, the 1989 King County Transportation Plan identified the need to widen Carr Road between 108th. Avenue S.E. and the Talbot Road intersection by six lanes with HOV provisions. While these recommended improvements are identified as a high priority project for the County, they have not been included for funding in the County's 1990 -1995 Capital Improvement Program. Also, the County has proposed one new signal along Carr Road at 105th Place S.E., in addition to the new signal being installed at 98th Ave. S.E. Both signals will be developer - funded (not VMC). While installation of these two signals will improve traffic safety, they are not expected to significantly improve traffic congestion. Traffic Growth Future traffic growth in the study area is comprised of two components. The first component is background traffic, i.e. traffic traveling through the area on S.W. 43rd St. and Talbot Road S. which is not related to Valley Medical Center. The second component of growth is traffic generated by expansion of existing facilities and new construction occurring at VMC. This second 74 component will increase traffic volumes at access driveways, on internal circulation routes and contribute to increased volumes on adjacent streets. Between 1980 and 1989, King County regional population grew at approximately 3% per year (Renton population grew at a rate of approx. 24 %). Historic Traffic Counts by King County (1977 -1987) indicate a 3.3% per year increase in the Average Daily Traffic (ADT) on Carr Road west of SR -515. Based on these data, a three percent regional annual rate was assumed for background traffic. Figures 19 and 20 show the AM and PM peak -hour volumes for 1995 assuming 3% annual growth but without any VMC expansion. In the 1982 Traffic Circulation Study of Valley Medical Center prepared by Transportation Planning & Engineering, the driveway volumes for the PM peak hour of 4:00 - 5:00 represented 7.8% of the total volume of 5,800 vehicles per day entering and exiting the main campus. Assuming that today's traffic is similarly distributed over the course of a day, as it was in 1982, the estimated total volume entering and exiting all driveways is now 7,350 vehicles per day. Significant Impacts of Proposed Action Trip Generation Daily and peak -hour trips generated by the proposed VMC expansion were estimated using trip generation statistics assembled by the Institute of Transportation Engineers (ITE, 1987) for medical office buildings (Section 720). The medical office building rate was selected because the Average Weekday (PM peak - hour) trip generation rates are larger than those for Hospitals (Section 610) and Clinics (Section 630) per 1,000 sq. ft. of gross floor area; this results in a more conservative estimate of future traffic. Table 8 summarizes the daily and peak -hour vehicle trips generated by the proposed development by the year 1995. As shown, the Proposed Action would generate an additional 4,040 vehicular trips on an average weekday, with 169 of those trips occurring during the AM peak -hour and 397 trips during the PM peak -hour. Trip Distribution and Assignment It is assumed that trips generated by the proposed facilities would follow the general distribution patterns of existing traffic arriving and departing from VMC, as shown in Figure 16. Several other factors were considered in the assignment of generated traffic to specific access driveways and streets, including the campus each facility would be located on, the proximity of driveways to the specific building site and the assumption that a tunnel connecting the north and south campuses would be constructed. Figures 21 through 24 show 1995 AM and PM peak -hour trips generated by the Proposed Action and Alternative 2. Impacts associated with Alternative 3 would be essentially the same as the 75 0 N DWY #4 J 1 0 OJ )1 j 01 on Q r� N co Z -coin _L. 24 18 DWY #3 J i L % 76 S 177TH Lu o J r NI N co v. N .. o ^i0N '437 I SW 41ST ST ..)1(... r622 .1, J VALLEY MEDICAL 15 -. ) f CENTER 470, 4?fov DWY#1 4 N J 68 )i -) N GQEz Noon 31 445 1462 -0-- 2024 J -0`— 2017 AL ( 12 101 J 40a 415 1f A �—. ,14° 5. 1 NN.� m °N 52T ^ 5-- -) ff F n nn N 1t` SW 150 216 —y J J SOUTH JI CAMPUS o J o� 11 1r 13 13 av N CO J S 45TH PL 67 0 Th n a CENTRAC FIGURE 19 1995 AM PEAK HOUR TRAFFIC VOLUMES WITHOUT EXPANSION OF VMC NkeiIWeinmn iodi1es, I, 76 cri DWY #3 1t CO c0 a 29 �0 % 9 S 177H W SW 41ST ST ...JR.,. r 48 VALLEY MEDICAL CENTER 04* JlL 0 DWY #2 J` 99 Th )/ DWY #1 J( 17 J )1 91Th N 01 04 v JSL SW 169 942 6 Th 0) j co co .374 876 414 J 1654 —� co - 13 1168 36J 2044 --� 131 216J 1585 —� 250 (0 o-- SOUTH 1r CAMPUS icy 3 J a-- 0 0 nco 0 tr 0/.0 J i S 45TH PL 54 1 i 1r N tO 0 )tr co cp CENTRAC FIGURE 20 1995 PM PEAK HOUR TRAFFIC VOLUMES WITHOUT EXPANSION OF VMC WINNE Ask, lilt, 77 TABLE 8 TRIP GENERATION SUMMARY 1995 TRAFFIC VOLUME PROJECTION AWDT AM PEAK HOUR PM PEAK HOUR TRIP GENERATOR VOLUME IN OUT TOTAL IN OUT TOTAL Proposed Action - Ambulatory Care Center 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 - 110,000 sq. ft. Medical Office 4,040 95 74 169 107 290 397 Reduced Scale Development 86,100 sq. ft. Medical Office 3,095 75 59 134 84 228 312 78 SW DWY #4 JS 1_1 r No O 0 i� 3 DWY #3 % j 7 J 2 • S 7TH (LJ 3 9 000 SW 41ST ST J1 O VALLEY DWY #2 MEDICAL ? )% CENTER wr DWY #1 J! 3 % 12— hco O 32 0 k--- 2 a .- V 134 ' 26 AL c 2 I I 37� 1 72 1f I • 0 o 5 -� oTh...._ co 0 o_J1l c° 3 PROPOSED "' "' 0 W TUNNEL J1 �— gct SOUTH CAMPUS 6 _J 1� 5--)*04 J 0O ( 0 r" 0 1 S 45TH PL Q 0) 0 fr 4—) 1f PI PI CENTRAC FIGURE 21 1995 AM PEAK HOUR GENERATED TRAFFIC VOLUMES — PROPOSED ACTION litimoks* 79 -J -J Q 00 0 SW 41ST ST JAL VALLEY MEDICAL CENTER N —I DWY #4 J / 3___)4 9� .r° - o 1 DWY #3 ` 1 9 J 12 38 DWY #2 1 ` e_JI 29 Th DWY #1 J f 12 J J1L 26 11- 0 Th sw 0 Q 00 c0 0 J 36----... 0-MI 82 (0 -J 0 J 17Th PROPOSED o TUNNEL jr SOUTH CAMPUS 23_J 17 Th ll It 0 .- 22 J 12 1 r ;to 17 r 3 r. 2 1tr an S 45TH PL t - CENTRAC FIGURE 22 1995 PM PEAK HOUR GENERATED TRAFFIC VOLUMES — PROPOSED ACTION 80 0) 000 �0 SW 41ST ST J,Q F VALLEY MEDICAL CENTER NO/ DWY #4 J 1 Z1 1t r, o � o DWY #3JjL 7:7 ; S � 77TH 2 2 8 DWY#2 J/ olz DWY #1 J` 2 �� 2o 11 G SW 26 —+ 0 26 0,J 12 r 29 Th 2 20 0 ML F2 9 3 0 J IL3 ► ^ S 45TH PL t N h 4 to PROPOSED ^ o m TUNNEL J / SOUTH f FQ CAMPUS 5 _J If 4 n 1fr 0 tr 5 3 00 0) O CENTRAC FIGURE 23 1995 AM PEAK HOUR GENERATED TRAFFIC VOLUMES — ALTERNATIVE 2 HYWea�R,� 81 0 Z J J j W nI o DWY #3 —J l f 000 SW 41ST ST J( VALLEY MEDICAL CENTER 7J 8 30 DWY #2 J! 0) or DWY #1 J` 9 J 36 M _ SW 0 29 —� 0� 2 ]Ir co J J 0J 14 Th PROPOSED TUNNEL J1 SOUTH CAMPUS 18 —J 14 —) on m L0 S 177TH a r, hor n 13 �1L 2 2 19 .8__ 0 0 a- 0 J nn 2O a, N J 1 S 45TH PL 1t N n 17-J 11� e CENTRAC FIGURE 24 1995 PM PEAK HOUR GENERATED TRAFFIC VOLUMES — ALTERNATIVE 2 &kei/Wethmin As,,its, 1ni1 82 Proposed Action. The difference would be no additional traffic volumes at driveways #1 through #4 (same as No Action). Traffic Proiections and Level of Service Traffic volumes for 1995 were estimated by combining the background traffic growth with the additional traffic generated by the Proposed Action, considering also the proposed tunnel that would link the north and south campuses (and, thereby, eliminate left turning movements). To conduct a "worst case" analysis, several assumptions were made, including no increase in the percentage of transit ridership, no increase in vehicle occupancy rate, no diversion of background traffic to other planned cross valley routes and provision of adequate on -site parking. For traffic studies, simulation of a worst case scenario is desirable so that potential problems are not overlooked. Figures 25 through 28 show the AM and PM peak -hour traffic for the alternatives. The relationship between project peak trips and background trips was examined for several key intersections. For the intersection of Talbot Road S. /S.W. 43rd St., the project- related trips represent 5.1% of the total trips for all movements. At the intersection of the Valley Freeway access ramps and S.W. 43rd St., project trips account for 9.6% of the total number of vehicular trips. For the intersection at East Valley Road /S.W. 43rd St., project related trips represent 2.9% of total trips. Table 6 summarizes LOS calculations for existing and 1995 both with and without VMC expansion (plus a 3% annual growth factor). For 1995 conditions, future road geometry was assumed to calculate LOS. This includes the LID improved geometrics to the street network and a tunnel or signal at the S.W. 43rd St. /Davis Avenue S. intersection. In addition to L.I.D. #329, additional traffic mitigation may be required for the Proposed Action because it was not part of the original calculations for L.I.D. mitigation. For analysis of 1995 conditions with the project, as well as the alternatives, LOS was calculated with the anticipated expansion of VMC facilities. Background traffic projected to 1995 was added to the traffic that will be generated by the new and expanded facilities to arrive at the AM and PM peak -hour volumes. For all alternatives, LOS was calculated without any improvements to existing geometry and with the L.I.D. improved geometrics to S.W. 43rd St., Talbot Road S. and SR -167 in addition to a vehicular /pedestrian tunnel connecting the north and south campuses. The four access driveways on Talbot Road S. are calculated to operate at an acceptable LOS for all conditions through 1995 with the existing roadway width and lane configuration. Consideration has been given to reducing the number of driveways. However, because all driveways are expected to operate at LOS C or better with the tunnel, no significant traffic access problem is expected that would warrant the closure of a driveway. 83 0) —J - J W 040, DWY #4 2� N jn DWY #3 � �n N SW 41ST ST J j (, VALLEY MEDICAL CENTER o ^� JIL SW 150_J 248 --... 0) Q 03 3 3 17 11 N cy n N 24 21 I 78 177TH DWY #2 J( 4 22 DWY #1 J`� 12 J 80 N 218 cy 78 204,3 152 340, 44 o it a ir cn 5 PROPOSED h ° m TUNNEL J SOUTH + '- CAMPUS 6__J 1r 5 --) ^ m J o a J n o n co 1 1 73 J i S 45TH PL 73_3 11 ^ 4 n o X45 r 1465 C. 14 11f CENTRAC FIGURE 25 1995 AM PEAK HOUR TRAFFIC VOLUMES WITH HOSPITAL EXPANSION PROPOSED ACTION itifillAstudt 84 o to n n o SW 41ST ST ...)/L J j W VALLEY MEDICAL CENTER 00 0 JjL SW co* DWY #4 J 5 24� DWY #3 J 1 L 47-) 13 —+ 135 roy DWY #2 J( 1281 )1 mm m� DWY #1 29 _1 1377 m 11 a GP 189 �) 978 —.. 8� CO 129m 414. / 1701�� 1tr CO co n co 15 1250 r 1598 596 JI ono 1 om 29 11 S 177TH If" noa, v r- 782 ea 0) co 7 —J 1 r ° Ct L 1 � Q PROPOSED o ^ ^ no I--- J TUNNEL J SOUTH 1 CAMPUS 26__I alo 46 J N --1 n� n it:X15 f 24 J j S 45TH PL rr � 1t ul n � CENTRAC FIGURE 26 1995 PM PEAK HOUR TRAFFIC VOLUMES WITH HOSPITAL EXPANSION PROPOSED ACTION 85 NINI (n Q DWY #4 1 1 W 0� 2 II Nm O J n J J .I°I4r _�24 DWY #3 ` 1 7 S »7H W 2 - �r2 -� 16 W N DWY #2 J SW 41ST ST Jg ` VALLEY 4 ___i MEDICAL 21 CENTER �N" m N OWY# 1 J 0 J SW 150_, 242 -� 1� 0) LLJ Q CO 03 N GPI Cmg 42 20.37 J 1 \ c 14 cV co PROPOSED TUNNEL J SOUTH CAMPUS s _J 4 0 -J J 7°C 0) Q 0) 149 J/ 338 44 ao J j S 45TH PL 72 3� CENTRAC FIGURE 27 1995 AM PEAK HOUR TRAFFIC VOLUMES WITH HOSPITAL EXPANSION ALTERNATIVE 3 Niff/WeinminAiii/es, Ini, 86 o':' �- 26 nnm X417 3 SW 41ST ST J(` r56 VALLEY 26J MEDICAL 122-1 CENTER /w m° DWY #1 J 91 N m � DWY #4 J 24 N*0 29 DWY #3 J / L !— o S 1 77TH oh co w 45_1 if- 127 6. 127 nc ce .a DWY #2 J( 0 SW 169, 971�� 6 1 0) 146 978 978 --•• m 129 414_, 1691 —+ 15 26 127Th 2' 114 a.— 791 )1 1233 N N ° ,10) ao 235 1593 --� 250 14� Q PROPOSED V N TUNNEL °D J1 SOUTH CAMPUS J ^ ^ o n n ( ` 24 J S 45TH PL 0) II 75 z=z; N r 0) CENTRAC FIGURE 28 1995 PM PEAK HOUR TRAFFIC VOLUMES WITH HOSPITAL EXPANSION ALTERNATIVE 3 87 Driveway #5 at S.W. 43rd St. currently operates at LOS F in the AM peak -hour for eastbound left -turn traffic. This intersection is planned for right turn in, right turn out only operation with the L.I.D. and tunnel construction; emergency vehicles will be allowed to turn left to or from S.W. 43rd St.,. however. With completion of the L.I.D. in 1995, the driveway will improve to LOS C or better. Traffic Safety Additional vehicular and pedestrian traffic attributable to the project may increase the number of accidents at affected intersections. It is not anticipated, however, that the overall rate or pattern of accidents would be altered significantly. As noted previously, pedestrian /vehicular traffic accident involvement in this area historically has been minimal. The construction of the L.I.D. will enhance the safety of traffic circulation between the north and south campuses by eliminating traffic crossing S.W. 43rd St. Transit As noted previously, METRO Transit presently serves VMC throughout the day and provides additional service during the AM and PM peak- hours. Neither the Proposed Action nor the alternatives are expected to have any significant affect on existing transit service in the area. However, with an increased emphasis on minimizing the number of vehicular trips generated during peak -hour periods by employees, greater emphasis will be placed on transit ridership (refer to Mitigation Measures). Pedestrian and Bicycle Facilities The proposed S.W. 43rd St. L.I.D. includes construction of sidewalks with a landscaping buffer providing a visual barrier between pedestrians and vehicles. The L.I.D. does not include a separate bicycle lane, so bicyclists will share the road with vehicles or use the sidewalks that have curb ramps for easy road - to- sidewalk transition. The proposed S.W. 43rd St. tunnel will provide for safe movement of pedestrians and employees between the north and south campus. Parking For the existing conditions, the City of Renton requires that VMC provide a minimum of 1,030 parking spaces. The current number of stalls provided by VMC is 1,688; which is adequate to meet the demand of 1,514 parking spaces identified in the July 1989 parking study (Jacobson, N.G. 1989. Valley Medical Center Parking Study). The Proposed Action will increase the overall campus parking demand by approximately 385 stalls to a total of 1,899 parking spaces. The Ambulatory Care Center will not increase the parking demand by its relocation. Similarly, expansion of the existing facilities into the space to be vacated by ACC will not increase 88 parking demand. This expansion will allow for more storage and open floor space. As previously noted in the Project Description, the City of Renton recently authorized VMC to expand the existing parking garage by 800 parking spaces (total of 1,100 spaces will be contained in the garage). Construction for this project is to begin in 1991 and be completed prior to occupancy of the Medical Office Building II which is proposed as part of this Action. The parking study (Ibid) indicates that the increase in parking demand can be met by more complete utilization of existing parking facilities on the the north campus and use of the parking lot on the south campus. The location of the new facilities will lead to increased use of exisiting under utilized parking facilities. The sudy recommends the relocation of the hospital daytime employees to the south parking lot in order to provide closeby parking for the patients of the new facility. Construction Impacts During the construction period, there will be a short -term increase in traffic because of delivery of materials and commuting by construction workers. This increase is expected to have minimal impact on LOS and traffic congestion. During construction of the new facilities, existing parking spaces will be lost temporarily by use of construction equipment /material storage. An additional offsite parking facility may be required for construction employee parking and temporary hospital parking. Parking of vehicles at the south lot should accommodate any additional demand. Mitigation Measures The overall LOS for the road network will decline in response to growth in the area with or without the project. The increase in traffic from the VMC facilities represents only a small fraction of this total traffic volume (less than 10 %) and, therefore, should not significantly contribute to declining LOS on the roads serving the facility. However, the LOS at several driveways is reduced as a result of the Proposed Action or alternatives. For those intersections that are already at LOS F, it is expected that VMC would pay their fair share of needed improvements, together with other developers in the area. Continued implementation of Valley Medical Center's Transportation Management Plan is recommended -- to help improve present and future traffic congestion in the area. Transportation Management Plan The Valley Medical Center Transportation Plan (TMP), adopted in October 1987, is a plan of action to mitigate traffic congestion and other traffic impacts in the vicinity of the medical center by 89. encouraging employees to commute by public transit or by participating various ridesharing programs. The goal of the TMP is to reduce total number of vehicle trips generated during the peak hour by all medical center employees (existing plus expansion) by 10 percent within 5 years of implementation of the TMP. It is anticipated that the Proposed Action will generate a need to re- evaluate elements and /or emphasis contained in the existing TMP. The major components of the existing TMP are the following: o HOV Oriented Site Planning: The purpose of HOV oriented site planning is to assure that building orientation, parking location, parking area amenities (lighting, surface), driveways and turnarounds are designed to facilitate HOV use where appropriate. o HOV Facilities The purpose of HOV facilities is to provide visible, physical incentives for using HOV's in and around the site. o Parking Management The purpose of parking management (initiated in February 1988) is to improve access and mobility, to prevent spillover, and to influence employee choice of travel mode. High exposure, conveniently located carpooling spaces have been established. These spaces are being and will be promoted in the parking updates circulated to all employees by the Employee Transit Coordinator. For the majority of employees to receive north campus parking, they need to participate in carpools and improve the HOV ratio. A carpool is defined as two or more persons per vehicle riding together at least four days a week. Carpooling and other identified employees receive special passes to use VMC's lots. The amount of parking now provided by VMC!exceeds current demand by 12% and the amount of parking required by the City of Renton by 39 %. With planned expansion of the parking garage, adequate parking will be available on- site to prevent the possibility of future off -site parking spillover. 90 o Ridesharing and Transit Program The purpose of the ridesharing and transit program is to aggressively promote and support the use of transit and ridesharing among employees. To do this, the following are performed: - Post transit /ridesharing information in a commuter information center (CIC) located in a prominent place for both employees and clients; - Distribute transit /ridesharing information and ridematch applications to all employees twice per year and to new employees when they begin work; - Conduct transit /rideshare promotion twice per year; and - Set up shift changes wherever possible to minimize the number of VMC employees on the surrounding roadways during maximum congestion periods. o Monitoring, Evaluation, and Enforcement The Security Department will establish, monitor and maintain enforcement of the transportation management plan for VMC. Statistical comparisons will be completed as needed on the usage of HOVs. Daily monitoring of the entire site will be accomplished; selective enforcement of specific parking areas will be done on an as- needed basis. Current surveys conducted measuring the effectiveness of the TMP found about 8.5 percent participation in the program through carpooling only. In order to achieve the TMP goal, employees are encouraged to change their commuting pattern through the following actions: - Establish commuter information centers at several locations on campus; - Increase bus routes, including direct route to facility; Periodic distribution of transit and rideshare program information to employees; - Coordination with Metro for improved transit service, based on employee comments (modified routes, improved schedules); - Cooperation with Metro for specialized bus service for employees during morning and evening work shift times; 91 - Provision of information regarding the Metro computerized ridematch service; and - Use of Metro Van Pool passenger vans by employee vanpools. Site Lavout /Access As a part of the TMP, one possible site access consideration is the realignment of driveway No. 3. This driveway provides ingress and egress to Talbot Road S. and is actually located slightly north (30 - 50 feet) of South 177th St. While accident data does not specifically note an historical problem as a result of this driveway /street offset, realignment could minimize the potential for future turning movement conflicts, as a result of increased traffic associated with the Proposed Action. While realignment could reduce the potential for traffic conflicts in this area, it is also possible that realignment may impact the existing residential area, as a result of an increase in the amount of through- traffic using S. 177th St. As previously noted, this street serves a single family residential area of well - maintained homes on large lots and connects Talbot Road S. to S. Carr Road. As such, with realignment, motorists could find it faster to exit from driveway No. 3 onto S. 177th St. for travel to S. Carr Road, thereby, avoiding congestion associated with the intersection at S.W. 43rd St. and Talbot Road S. Participation in LID #329 In addition to the L.I.D. # 329, additional traffic mitigation may be required for this development as it was not part of the original calculations for L.I.D. mitigation. The City has preliminarily determined that VMC's mitigation fee, based on an increase in traffic generated by the Proposed Action (approximately 3,759 vehicle trips, could be as follows: 92 34.17 trips per 1,000 square feet of medical office space (based on ITE Trip Generation rates) x 110,000 (approx. square feet of medical office space proposed) x $22.97 cost participation per trip generated (based on original S.W. 43rd St. study) = 34.17 x 110,000* = 3,759 trips 1000 $22.97 x 3,759 = $86,344.23* * The final mitigation fee would be dependent upon additional vehicular trips and final building areas. Unavoidable Adverse Impacts The additional development proposed with this project would generate new vehicle trips to and from the project site. C. PUBLIC SERVICES - FIRE Affected Environment Fire suppression and life support services at the project site are provided by the Renton Fire Department. The Department has three fire stations with the closest being Station #13 at 17040 Benson Road S., approximately 3/4 mile east of the Valley Medical Center campus. The second closest station is #11 which is located in downtown Renton, approximately 2 1/2 miles north. In addition, King County operates Fire Station #42 which is located on Petrovitsky Road, approximately three miles east of the site. A call- for - service at Valley Medical Center would be responded to by units from both Station #13 and #11 and, if units are available, Station #42. The estimated response time for units from Station #13 would be approximately five minutes; the response time for units from Station #11 would be roughly 5 -6 minutes; and the response time for units from Station #42 would be approximately 5 minutes. A typical first alarm fire response would involve: two engine companies, a ladder company, a command vehicle and an aid car. The Renton Fire Prevention Bureau indicates that in 1989 they responded to 23 calls- for - service at Valley Medical Center. Of these, only two were actually fires; the majority were unintentionally set alarms (48 %) or alarm malfunctions (35 %). 93 Significant Impacts of Proposed Action During construction, the proposed project could temporarily increase the potential for fire and obstruction to fire fighting equipment, as a result of construction materials and debris, on- site movement of construction equipment and on -site construction - related traffic congestion. The long term impact of the project on the Renton Fire Department would be an increased demand for fire protective services (life and property protection). The Renton Fire Prevention Bureau estimates that the Proposed Action or Alternatives 2 or 3 could generate an additional 6 -8 calls -for- service per year in response to fire alarms; no additional calls - for- service are anticipated with regard to the need for emergency medical services (phone conversation, Jim Mathews, Renton Fire Dept., 5/30/90). This increased demand for fire protective services would also include additional annual fire code compliance inspections. Key Renton Fire Prevention Bureau concerns include ensuring that project design maintains the following: o both a primary and a secondary access to every building; o the Medical Office Building II is fully sprinklered; o minimum vertical clearance of 13 feet for the skybridge connecting the Medical Office Building to the parking structure; and o minimum aisle width and turning radius dimensions are maintained for all fire lanes.; and o a plan must be submitted to the City of Renton Fire Prevention Bureau with dates of completion for a sprinkler retrofit of the hospital. This plan must be approved by the Renton Fire Prevention Bureau before any further construction can take place. While Valley Medical Center provides valuable medical service to the community, an additional concern of the City of Renton is whether as a public facility the public costs of serving VMC are adequately offset by the revenue received. Valley Medical Center, as a public entity, does not pay property taxes -- monies which serve as one source of revenue for the City. VMC does, however, provide revenue to the City through other means, specifically: water and sewer utility fees, construction permit fees, special assessments (L.I.D.'s and impact mitigation fees) and leasehold excise taxes. The Proposed Action would provide added revenue to the City through each of these funding sources. A portion of this revenue would be allocated to the Fire Prevention Bureau. The leasehold 94 excise tax is a tax in -lieu of the property tax, assessed on any private use of public property. Two possible scenarios could .occur. If VMC owns the proposed Medical Office Building II and leases floors 2 through 5 to physicians, the hospital is exempt from property tax. The physicians would, however, pay a leasehold excise tax on each physician's space. If, however, a partnership of physicians own Medical Office Building II, the partnership would pay a leasehold excise tax for the real estate leased from the hospital. In addition, the partnership would pay personal property taxes for the medical office building, which would be roughly equivalent to real property taxes. In any event, the only exempt portion of Medical Office Building II (from a tax revenue generating standpoint) would be that portion actually owned by the Hospital and devoted to Hospital - related uses. Impacts of Alternatives In the short -term, because the site would remain undeveloped, the No Action alternative would not result in any direct or indirect fire service impacts. Demand for additional medical office space will likely continue, however, resulting either in future development of this north campus site or a possible south campus location. Development at either location in the future would result in impacts comparable to the Proposed Action. Impacts associated with Alternatives 2 & 3 are not expected to result in fire service impacts which are substantially different from those noted for the Proposed Action. However, concern expressed by the Renton Fire Prevention Bureau for development at the south campus site included ensuring that both a primary and secondary access is available and an effective fire flow network exists. Development in the south campus would be accessible from Davis Avenue South and South 45th P1. A 12 -inch water line is located in both streets. Fire service impacts related to the costs -of- service would not differ significantly from that noted with regard to the Proposed Action. As with the Proposed Action, a portion of the revenue generated from construction and long -term operation of the building (through water and sewer utility fees, construction permit fees, special assessments and leasehold excise taxes) would be allocated to the Renton Fire Prevention Bureau. Mitigation Measures None are required if Renton Fire Prevention Bureau concerns are complied with, specifically: o both a primary and a secondary access to every building; o the Medical Office Building II is fully sprinklered; o minimum vertical clearance of 13 feet for the skybridge connecting the Medical Office Building to the parking structure; and 95 sprinkler retrofit of the hospital. This plan must be approved by the Renton Fire Prevention Bureau before any further construction can take place. Unavoidable Adverse Impacts Increased demand on the Renton Fire Prevention Bureau for fire protective services. 96 SECTION IV SIGNIFICANT IMPACTS THAT CANNOT BE MITIGATED 97 SECTION IV SIGNIFICANT IMPACTS THAT CANNOT BE MITIGATED Traffic A reduction in LOS for certain intersections in the vicinity of the Valley Medical Center campus. A small portion of this LOS reduction would be attributable to the Proposed Action. Valley Medical Center would provide added revenue to the City of Renton as a result of construction and long -term operation of the proposed building (through water and sewer utility fees, construction permit fees, special assessments and leasehold excise taxes). While a portion of this increased revenue would be allocated for street improvements, the amount of revenue generated, may not fully compensate the City for the cost of services rendered. Fire Protection Increased demand on the Renton Fire Protection Bureau for fire protective services. Valley Medical Center would provide added revenue to the City of Renton as a result of construction and long -term operation of the proposed building (through water and sewer utility fees, construction permit fees, special assessments and leasehold excise taxes). While a portion of this increased revenue would be allocated to the City's Fire Prevention Bureau, the amount of revenue generated, may not fully compensate the City for the cost of services rendered. 98 REFERENCES Institute of Transportation Engineers. 1987. Trip Generation Manual (4th edition, Sept. 1987). Jacobson, N.G. & Assoc., Inc. 1989. Valley Medical Center Parking Study. King County. 1979. Soos Creek Plateau Communities Plan (Ord. # 4572). . 1987. Sensitive Areas Map Folio. Mahlum & Nordfors. 1987. Valley Medical Center Master Site Plan and Functional Program. Morgan, Clint. 1990. Meeting with Don Carr regarding traffic planning issues. Renton, City of. 1986. Compendium of the Comprehensive Plan. . 1983. Ord. # 3722 Amending the Zoning Ordinance. Scott, John. 1990. Personal conversation with Terry McCann regarding the need for high quality medical office space near VMC. U.S. Dept. of Transportation; Federal Highway Administration. 1985. Highway Capacity Manual. Valley Medical Center. 1988. Facts Pamphlet 1988. . 1988. 5 -year Strategic Plan 1989 - 1993. . 1989. Facts Pamphlet 1989. Werner, Greg. 1990. Phone conversation with Terry McCann regarding the medical office building market in the vicinity of Valley Medical Center. 100 0 .- • APPENDIX A DISTRIBUTION LIST Copies of this EIS have been distributed to the following agencies and organizations. Federal Agencies U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Seattle District Office Engineering Dev. - Planning PO Box C -2755 Seattle, WA 98124 U.S. Dept. of Agriculture Soil Conservation Service Renton Field Office 935 Powell St. S.W. Renton, WA 98055 U.S. Dept. of Housing and Urban Development Attn: Mr. Nishimura Arcade Plaza Building 1321 Second Ave. Seattle, WA 98101 U.S. Dept. of Interior Fish and Wildlife Service Ecological Services Office 2625 Parkmont Lane Olympia, WA 98504 U.S. Dept of Transportation Department of Highways District #1 6431 Corson Ave. S. Seattle, WA 98108 U.S. Energy Office Washington State Dept. of Energy Attn: Richard Watson, Director 809 Legion Way S.E., M/S SA -11 Olympia, WA 98504 U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Environmental Evaluation Div. 1200 Sixth Ave, M/S MD -102 Seattle, WA 98101 State Agencies Dept. of Agriculture Soil Conservation Service 300 - 120th N.E. Bellevue, WA 98005 Dept. of Ecology SEPA Register M/S PV -11 Olympia, WA 98504 Dept. of Ecology Environmental Review Section M/S PV -11 Olympia, WA 98504 Dept. of Ecology Attn: Terra Proden Wetlands Section M/S PV -11 Olympia, WA 98504 Dept. of Fisheries Attn: Joe Roble Natural Production Division 115 General Administration Building, M/S AX -11 Olympia, WA 98504 Dept. of Social & Health Services P.O. Box 1788 Olympia, WA 98504 Dept. of Social & Health Services Construction Review Section 1112 S. Quince, M/S ET -12 Dept. of Transportation Highway Administration Building M/S KF -01 Olympia, WA 98504 Dept. of Wildlife 600 N. Capitol Way, M/S GJ -11 Olympia, WA 98504 Office of Program Planning & Fiscal Management Attn: EIS Review 101 House Office Building Olympia, WA 98504 Local Agencies Office of the Mayor City of Renton Attn: Mayor's Assistant Renton City Council Renton Planning Commission Renton Parks Board Renton City Attorney Renton Fire Dept. Renton Hearing Examiner's Office Renton Parks & Recreation Dept. Renton Planning & Community Development Dept. Renton Police Dept. Renton Public Works Dept. Renton SEPA Information Center King County Boundary Review Board Attn: Alda Wilkinson, Exec. Dir. 3600 - 136th P1. S.E. Bellevue, WA 98006 -1400 King County EIS Review Coordinator King County Courthouse, Room 400 516 Third Ave. Seattle, WA 98104 King County Building & Land Development Div. SEPA Information Center 3600 - 136th P1. S.E. Bellevue, WA 98006 -1400 King County Planning Division 7th Floor, Smith Tower Seattle, WA 98104 King County Parks & Planning Div. Attn: Erik Stockdale 1108 Smith Tower Seattle, WA 98104 104 King County Public Works Dept. Hydraulics Div. King County Administration Building, Room 900 400 Fourth Ave. Seattle, WA 98104 King County Soil Conservation Attn: Jack Davis 935 Powell Ave. S.W. Renton, WA 98055 Renton SEPA Information Center METRO Environmental Planning Div. 821 Second Ave., M/S 63 Seattle, WA 98104 METRO Transit Div. 821 Second Ave. Seattle, WA 98104 -1598 METRO Water Quality Div. 821 Second Ave. Seattle, WA 98104 -1598 Muckleshoot Tribal Council 39015 - 172nd Ave. S.E. Auburn, WA 98002 Puget Sound Council of Governments 216 First Ave. S. Seattle, WA 98104 Puget Sound Air Pollution Control Agency P.O. Box 9863 Seattle, WA 98109 Seattle -King County Dept. of Public Health 400 Yesler Building Seattle, WA 98104 City of Kent Planning Dept. 220 - 4th Ave. S. Kent, WA 98032 -5895 City of Tukwila Planning & Building Dept. 6200 Southcenter Blvd. Tukwila, WA 98188 105 Other Organizations and Individuals Daily Journal of Commerce P.O. Box 11050 Seattle, WA 98111 Greater Renton Chamber of Commerce 300 Rainier Ave. N. Renton, WA 98055 Journal American 1705 - 132nd Ave. N.E. Bellevue, WA 98005 King County Public Library Attn: Susie Wheeler 300 - 8th Ave. N. Seattle, WA 98109 Mahlum & Nordfors 2505 Third Ave., Suite 219 Seattle, WA 98121 Pacific Northwest Bell Attn: Harry Kluges 1600 - 7th Ave. Room 1513 Seattle, WA 98191 Puget Sound Power & Light Co. Attn: EIS Review South Central Div. Office 620 Grady Way Renton WA 98055 Renton Public Library Main Branch Renton Public Library Highlands Branch Renton School District #403 435 Main Ave. S. Renton, WA 98055 Seattle Post Intelligencer Business News 101 Elliott Ave. W. Seattle, WA 98111 Seattle Times - Eastside Edition Business News P.O. Box 70 Seattle, WA 98111 Valley Daily News 106 Attn: City Editor P.O. Box 10 Kent, WA 98032 Valley Medical Center 400 S. 43rd St. Renton, WA 98055 Washington Natural Gas Co. 815 Mercer St. Seattle, WA 98111 Wilsey & Ham Pacific Attn: Ron Deverman, Project Manager P.O. Box C -97304 Bellevue, WA 98009 107 APPENDIX B LIST OF ELEMENTS OF THE ENVIRONMENT The following delineates those environmental elements which are discussed in this Draft EIS, beginning on the page indicted. The Table of Contents should also be consulted because these elements are also discussed in subsequent sections of this EIS. The list is based on the public scoping process associated with this project. 1. Natural Environment Page a. Earth NA Geology NA Soils NA Topography NA Unique physical features NA Erosion /Enlargement of land area (accretion) NA b. Air NA Air quality NA Odor NA Climate NA c. Water NA Surface water movement /quantity /quality NA Runoff /absorption NA Floods NA Ground water movement /quantity /quality NA Public water supplies NA d. Plants and Animals NA Habitat for and number of diversity of species of plants, fish, or other wildlife NA Unique species NA Fish or wildlife migrating routes NA e. Energy and Natural Resources NA Amount required /rate of use /efficiency NA Source /availability NA Nonrenewable resources NA Conservation and renewable resources NA Scenic resources NA 108 2. Built Environment a. Environmental Health NA Noise NA Rise of Explosion NA Releases or potential releases to the environment affecting public health, such as toxic or hazardous materials NA b. Land and Shoreline Use 41 Relationship to existing land use plan and to estimated population 55 Housing NA Light and glare NA Aesthetics 45 Recreation NA History and cultural preservation NA Agricultural crops NA c. Transportation 64 Transportation systems 64 Vehicular traffic 66 Waterborne, rail, and air traffic NA Parking 72 Movement /circulation of people or goods 72 Traffic hazards 69 d. Public Services and Utilities 93 Fire 93 Police NA Schools NA Parks or other recreation facilities NA Maintenance NA Communications NA Water /service NA Sewer /solid waste NA Other governmental services or utilities NA 109