Tuesday Hear New Plans For Major Hospital Development

Tomorrow, Tuesday, March 29th, from 6-8pm, the community is invited to attend the 29th meeting in the series of Children Hospital Meetings with the SAC (Standing Advisory Committee) to hear about specific plans for the next phase of development at the north end of Laurelhurst, at the corner of Sandpoint Way NE and 40th Ave NE.

At the January meeting, the SAC learned that Children's Hospital had revoked their MUP application for the surgery pavilion and is now submitting an application for a bed tower that will house 196 non-specific beds in a building named "Forest C."

LCC told the Laurelhurst Blog:

This is a tower similar in scale to its adjacent ones which are Forest A and Forest B with the services for surgery and day infusions and procedures. The initial plans are stated in very general outlines with few details given. Hopefully more will be provided at the SAC meeting. LCC and the public should attend to know more after that next SAC meeting.

Here is the agenda:

• Welcome/Introduction of attendees
• Housekeeping
• Meeting Context
• Forest C Project Overview 
• MIMP & Growth Updates Presentation
• 2021 Annual Report
• 6:45pm - Public Comments
• Committee Deliberation

Here is the meeting link and additional information:

• Webinar number: 2498 143 9522
• Webinar password: fpCJfygw446 (37253949 from phones)
• Join by phone: 206-207-1700 or 408-418-9388
• Access code: 249 814 39522

Nathan Torgelson Director, Seattle Department of Construction and inspection and
Andres Mantilla Director, Department of Neighborhoods sent this information (in part) to the SAC in response to SAC questions:

Children’s has decided to withdraw its MUP application in order to demonstrate they are following Condition 15 of the City Council conditions for the campus’ Major Institution Master Plan (MIMP), which reads: “Children’s shall create and maintain a Standing Advisory Committee [SAC] to review and comment on all proposed and potential projects prior to submission of their respective Master Use Permit applications. The SAC shall use the Design Guidelines for their evaluation.” 

Because Children’s has withdrawn its MUP application, all related correction letters, recommendations, and decisions by SDCI have also been withdrawn. However, the public comment received for this project to date will remain part of the record. When the SAC provides their comments and a new MUP application is submitted, in that order, SDCI will begin its review anew, taking into consideration the SAC’s comments. This is consistent with SDCI practices and procedures for past projects. 

Based on the prior submittal, SDCI did consider whether the proposal would be in conformance with the MIMP. SDCI will only make a final determination after receiving input from the SAC, the general public and after reviewing the application materials and any corrections. 

Because the MUP has been withdrawn, associated correction letters are also withdrawn. However, we hope the applicant will address these comments in their new MUP application. If they do not, similar comments will be provided to the applicant at that time. 

After the SAC provides their comments and a new MUP application is submitted, there will be a new comment period for the application and those comments will be added to the existing public comment from the withdrawn MUP application. 

Seattle Children’s worked with the City to identify a means of sharing information with the community while neither in-person or on-line meetings were available due the ongoing pandemic in response to Children's letter of February 11, 2021 claiming that the community outreach process was modified. The only modification to the typical outreach done by Seattle Children’s was the “project introduction” video that was shared with the SAC and community to solicit initial feedback. The intent was not for this video to replace a SAC meeting. SDCI did allow the MUP application to be submitted prior to the SAC process being completed. This was a decision made by the SDCI assigned planner. The YouTube video was never intended to satisfy the SAC meeting requirements. 

In response to what efforts were made by Children's to provide project information to SAC members before submitting its MUP application in July 2020 - this information was provided to the SAC under the limits imposed by the City of Seattle Mayor’s emergency declaration during COVID-19 and in coordination with SDCI and DON staff. As you know, Seattle Children’s has withdrawn its MUP application to provide an additional pre- 2 application opportunity for SAC comment. Communications with the SAC are conducted through the City of Seattle, as the SAC is a City sanctioned advisory committee. Seattle Children’s followed the advice of the City on how best to communicate with the SAC during this unprecedented time and understood the information we provided would meet the intent of Condition 15 under the MIMP. 

Children’s will continue to meet with the SAC for items that require additional review following the MUP application. Children’s does not intend to limit the number of SAC meeting on the proposal. It should be the goal of the SAC to provide a timely review of the proposed project. 

Seattle Children’s does not consider the proposed development to be a substantial alteration of the buffer as described in the MIMP. Additionally, reviewing alternatives is not part of the SAC process. We wish to be collaborative and accommodating to the SAC’s requests, however we are not prepared to present alternatives for this project.

 

This information was published in a recent LCC newsletter:

Comment on Children’s New Phase 3 Plan 

Seattle Children’s Hospital will present more details for its Phase 3 development, which is part of its 2010 Major Institution Master Plan (MIMP), March 29. 

The January 25 meeting revealed that the Surgical Pavilion planned for the northeast corner of the campus was permanently scrapped, replaced by a new Phase 3 plan to build Forest C, a 196-bed tower. Located near Forest B, it will primarily face Sand Point Way NE with an open fan design (similar to Forest A). 

At every major building phase of the MIMP, the SAC and the public are invited to view the proposed plans and make public comment at the beginning of scheduled SAC meetings. 

Please feel free to present your comments at the Seattle Children’s SAC meeting Tuesday, March 29, 6 to 8 p.m. via the Webex virtual meeting format

For more information go here. 

Today Hospital Doing Sewer Work on NE 45th Street

Children's Hospital posted this information on their Facilities Blog:

Today, sewer line work in 40th Avenue NE and NE 45th Street associated with Building Care will lead to the following impacts:

• No parking will be allowed on 40th Avenue between 45th Street and Sand Point Way NE.
• That portion of 40th Avenue will be reduced to one lane near the Seattle Children’s entrance. Flaggers will be used to safely maintain two-way traffic.
• The Metro route 65 bus stop on 40th Avenue near Seattle Children’s Emergency Department will be closed, and buses will not drive down 40th Avenue that day.
• Temporary steel traffic ramps will be placed on 45th Street at the west side of the intersection with 40th Avenue. Flaggers will be on site and vehicles will need to slow down while driving over the ramps. Two-way traffic will be maintained at all times on 45th Street.

The sewer work will begin at 3:30 a.m. today and be completed by 3pm.  The City of Seattle has approved a noise variance allowing this project to begin earlier in the day than normal. Early morning noise will primarily be from setting up traffic control, the use of forklifts and placing pipes on the ground; the noisier construction work will begin around 7 a.m.

Tonight Important Hospital Construction Meeting to Impact North Laurelhurst

 

Tonight, from 6-8pm, the community is invited to attend the 28th meeting in the series of Children Hospital Meetings with the SAC (Standing Advisory Committee) to hear about specific plans for the next phase of development, "Copper Project" - a surgery pavilion and parking garage at the north end of Laurelhurst, in the area of 45th Avenue NE and NE 50th Streets.

The two new proposed 37 foot tall buildings, connected by a bridge span, will be viewable by those living in that area, according to images prepared by the Hospital's contracted design firm. Parking for 1,138 vehicles is also proposed.

The buildings and a new road will be situated close to the perimeter of the Hospital and residential boundaries. As neighbors have expressed in over 100 pages of comments submitted to the City, there will be significant  and permanent impacts affecting the livability of the neighborhood.

The public is invited to give comments at 7pm on Wednesday. Sign-up here up until 2 hours before the start of the meeting.  Written comments can be submitted anytime, but in ample time to give the SAC adequate time to review. Send comments to nelson.pesigan@seattle.gov.

Here are the meeting materials:

• WebEx Meeting Link.  Dial-in/Access Code: 408-418-9388 / 2496 477 2633
• Here is where public comments are posted
• Here is the 2020 Annual Report
• MUP Public Comment (submitted 2/2/21 according to DON (Dept of Neighborhoods)
• Phase 3 MIMP/Forest C
• SAC Meeting Notice/Agenda
• Seattle Children's Annual Report Presentation

Here is the agenda:

• Welcome /Introductions of SAC members 
• 9/21 Meeting Summary
• SAC roles/responsibilities
• Phase 3 MUP - Forest Project Overview
• 7pm - Public Comment 
• Election of new Chairperson 
• Adjournment and scheduling of next meeting 

The Children's Hospital SAC meeting that was supposed to take place on July 13th was  postponed, as was the December 2020 one, for similar reasons.. 

The meeting reportedly ran into several difficulties and a motion was made to stop the meeting immediately. First, the City's Department of Neighborhoods did not send out the presentation slide deck until the morning of the meeting, giving SAC members very little time to review the slides to be prepared for the meeting. The general timeframe is supposed to be at least one week.

Second, SAC members communicated that the 2020 MIMP Annual Report had many inconsistencies and inaccuracies and it was requested that they be corrected for the next meeting.

However, it has been reported that many of the inconsistencies have still not been corrected in the MIMP report, for the Wednesday meeting. 

Nelson told the Laurelhurst Blog "The Annual Report that is posted is the document that DON received from Children’s on 2/2/2021."

It is also a concern that the slide show presentation and MIMP report will not match and the MIMP is what is on file for the public to view. 

Neighbors have communicated that it is mandatory that the Hospital prove that the MIMP Report has been amended so that it is consistent with the slides.

The SAC expressed in prior meetings that it cannot accurately review the ongoing progress made in meeting the conditions of the Master Plan and approving it if the 2020 MIMP Report is inaccurate and the Hospital falsely claiming that they have met the Conditions.  

Reported inaccuracies of 2020 MIMP:

• Condition 15 not met as stated: “Children’s Complied with [City Council Condition 15].” (2020 MIMP Report, paragraph 15, PDF page 13):

Children’s shall create and maintain a Standing Advisory Committee (SAC) to review and comment on all proposed and potential projects prior to submission of their respective Master Use Permit applications. The SAC shall use the Design Guidance Guidelines for their evaluation.

• The SAC is to review and comment and advise the City and Children’s Hospital on the development that is occurring under the provisions of the Children’s Hospital Major Institution Master Plan before Children’s submits its MUP application to the City.
• Children’s submitted its Master Use Permit for Project Copper on July 7, 2020. Since the first SAC meeting for Project Copper was held on August 31, 2020, the Hospital did not meet with the SAC prior to submitting its Master Use Permit.
• The MUP states: “Seattle Children's submitted a Master Use Permit application for SDCI review on July 7, 2020" – this should be removed as it seems there is no pending application at the City. [2020 MIMP Report, PDF page 3]
• The Hospital withdrew its July 2020 Master Use Permit application and was to start and submit a new permit. However the MIMP report states (page 3): “Seattle Children's submitted a Master Use Permit application for SDCI review on July 7, 2020" which is reportedly not accurate and appears as if it needs to be removed from the report, as at this time there is no pending application.
• The report incorrectly states that the next phase of construction was presented to the SAC on June 25 of last year, including showing a design presentation. However the SAC did not meet on that date. Maureen Sheehan, with DON, sent email with a YouTube link with the design presentation, however that is not the same as a formal SAC meeting. Maureen did not state that the YouTube was to be a substitute for the meeting or notify the SAC of the short response timeframe.
• There was no notice in the email or video that the Hospital was going to submit Project Copper to SDCI before a SAC meeting took place. And the SAC was given very short notice in which to review the document.
• No notice was given to the SAC that the Youtube video was supposed to take the place of a SAC meeting. To the contrary, the July 1 email states “We are planning to hold the first in a series of on-line Standing Advisory Committee meetings to receive a detailed project presentation and review and comment on Project Copper later this Summer.”
• The meeting presentations states “Surgical Capacity Expansion: Project Copper – MUP paused.” However, the 2020 MIMP Report describes the project in detail and suggest that Project Copper is ongoing. [2020 MIMP Report, PDF page 3]
• It is not clear when Children’s issued its 2020 Annual Report. The Report indicates that Project Copper is going forward when, in fact, Children’s had withdrawn its MUP application. There needs an additional update to the MIMP report that in fact, Children’s has withdrawn its MUP application for Project Copper.

    

Neighbors, in addition, expresses these concerns:

• The Hospital is not following the correct sequence, in which the major institution formulates the proposed plan, then presents them, including the designs to the SAC, who review and make changes and then send it to Seattle Department of Construction & Inspections (SDCI ) who review it and send it back again to the SAC for any additioal changes.
• Hospital's process was out of order: In July, Children's Hospital went directly to SDCI and submitted their  permit which was  different than what was approved in the Major Institution Master Plan. Then the Hospital scheduled an  August meeting. However, during this time, SDCI  begun to work on the project. The City put up the notification boards up around the perimeter of the property which included the comment deadline. However neighbors reported that the documents regarding the proposed development were not even on-line yet in time to be able review and submit comments
• Neighbors also submitted comments on the Hospital's non-compliance stating that the Hospital is not following the approved standard process and that that the Hospital was trying to get approval from the City when they were supposed to first have the SAC's input whose role it is to review the development plans and makes changes. 
• One neighbor, David Yuan, sent a letter to the Director of the Department of Construction and Inspection, Nathan Torgelson, which stated, in part, that the process appeared to be faulty because the SAC had not been given the opportunity to review and comment on Children’s potential project before Children’s submitted its Major Institution Master Plan. (MUP) application to the City. This is the legal requirement of Condition 15 of the Seattle City Council decision that has not been followed.
• Concern that the Hospital's proposed development different is very different that what was approved in 2010 in the MIMP, in which the Seattle City Council approved the 20-year growth Master Plan for Children’s Hospital. The process to come to the approval included several years of Citizen Advisory Committee Meetings, multiple meetings between the hospital and LCC (Laurelhurst Community Club.) The City Council adopted the two parties Settlement Agreement some of which include: reduced square footage, no expansion of Hospital boundaries across Sand Point Way, 50 year restriction on expansion into residential areas,  height restrictions of no more than 20 percent of the campus land area over 90 feet and no more than 10 percent over 125 feet and no structure above 140 feet in height. The full Settlement Agreement is here.

Go here for more information or contact Nelson.Pesigan@seattle.gov.

Childrens Hospital Construction Activity This Week

 

    

Building Care, also called Forest B, of Phase 2 of Children's Hospital expansion is almost complete and this is the last installment of the Children's Hospital Construction Blog on this development. 

The Construction Blog says:

This will be the last weekly update about upcoming Building Care construction activities. Work will continue within the building until spring 2022. We will continue to post to this blog whenever an activity will affect neighbors.

The 310,000 square-foot addition will add an eight-story building and will includes diagnostic and treatment facilities, primarily out-patient cancer and others) labs, new state-of-the-art operating rooms, 20 inpatient beds, and a lobby. There will be two floors of underground parking and sterile processing. This will bring SCH bed total to 409, up from 200 before its expansion 2012 plan.

The helicopter landing pad moved temporarily to the roof of Forest A (176’), now known as Friends of Costco Building, Phase 1 of the expansion. The landing pad will be active until Building Care is completed. Noise is expected to be louder than the former ground-based helipad. When Forest B is complete, the helistop will moves to its permanent location on top of the Friends of Costco Building (same height).

The Hospital posted this information on their Construction Blog about specific construction activity this week:

Construction crews will continue building out interior spaces. Wood siding will be installed on the exterior of level 1 of Forest A  near the staff entrance when the carpenters strike is resolved.  All work will take place 8-6pm weekdays and 9-6pm on Saturdays.  

Call 206-987-8000 or email construction@seattlechildrens.org with questions.

Hospital Construction Activity This Week

  

    

Building Care, also called Forest B, of Phase 2 of Children's Hospital expansion is underway and the new building is planned to open in Spring of 2022.

The 310,000 square-foot addition will add an eight-story building and will includes diagnostic and treatment facilities, primarily out-patient cancer and others) labs, new state-of-the-art operating rooms, 20 inpatient beds, and a lobby. There will be two floors of underground parking and sterile processing. This will bring SCH bed total to 409, up from 200 before its expansion 2012 plan.

The helicopter landing pad moved temporarily to the roof of Forest A (176’), now known as Friends of Costco Building, Phase 1 of the expansion. The landing pad will be active until Building Care is completed. Noise is expected to be louder than the former ground-based helipad. When Forest B is complete, the helistop will moves to its permanent location on top of the Friends of Costco Building (same height).

The Hospital posted this information on their Construction Blog about specific construction activity this week:

Major construction on Building Care will conclude in October, but work will continue within the building until spring 2022. After October, we will no longer publish weekly posts on the Construction Blog for Building Care. However, we will continue to post to this blog whenever an activity will affect neighbors.

• Build out interior spaces on all levels
• River Entrance vestibule renovations begin (pending carpenter availability); alternative entry into River 3 will be provided adjacent to the vestibule

All work will take place 8-6pm weekdays and 9-6pm on Saturdays.  

Call 206-987-8000 or email construction@seattlechildrens.org with questions.

Hospital Construction Activity This Week

 

    

Building Care, also called Forest B, of Phase 2 of Children's Hospital expansion is underway and the new building is planned to open in Spring of 2022.

The 310,000 square-foot addition will add an eight-story building and will includes diagnostic and treatment facilities, primarily out-patient cancer and others) labs, new state-of-the-art operating rooms, 20 inpatient beds, and a lobby. There will be two floors of underground parking and sterile processing. This will bring SCH bed total to 409, up from 200 before its expansion 2012 plan.

The helicopter landing pad moved temporarily to the roof of Forest A (176’), now known as Friends of Costco Building, Phase 1 of the expansion. The landing pad will be active until Building Care is completed. Noise is expected to be louder than the former ground-based helipad. When Forest B is complete, the helistop will moves to its permanent location on top of the Friends of Costco Building (same height).

The Hospital posted this information on their Construction Blog about specific construction activity this week:

• • Build out interior spaces
  • Painting and striping
  • Install soil and mulch
  • Plant landscaping

All work will take place 8-6pm weekdays and 9-6pm on Saturdays.  

Call 206-987-8000 or email construction@seattlechildrens.org with questions.

Wednesday Important Hospital Development Meeting To Impact North Laurelhurst and Ongoing Inaccuracies With Hospital's MIMP Report

 

On Wednesday, the 22nd, from 6-8pm, the community is invited to attend the 27th meeting in the series of Children Hospital Meetings with the SAC (Standing Advisory Committee) to hear about specific plans for the next phase of development, "Copper Project" - a surgery pavilion and parking garage at the north end of Laurelhurst, in the area of 45th Avenue NE and NE 50th Streets.

The two new proposed 37 foot tall buildings, connected by a bridge span, will be viewable by those living in that area, according to images prepared by the Hospital's contracted design firm. Parking for 1,138 vehicles is also proposed.

The buildings and a new road will be situated close to the perimeter of the Hospital and residential boundaries. As neighbors have expressed in over 100 pages of comments submitted to the City, there will be significant  and permanent impacts affecting the livability of the neighborhood.

The public is invited to give comments at 6:50pm on Wednesday. Sign-up here up until 2 hours before the start of the meeting.  Written comments can be submitted anytime, but in ample time to give the SAC adequate time to review. Send comments to nelson.pesigan@seattle.gov.

Here are the meeting materials:

• WebEx Meeting Link.  Dial-in/Access Code: 408-418-9388 / 2496 477 2633
• Here is where public comments are posted
• Here is the 2020 Annual Report
• MUP Public Comment (submitted 2/2/21 according to DON (Dept of Neighborhoods)
• SAC Meeting Notice/Agenda
• Seattle Children's Annual Report Presentation

Here is the agenda:

• Welcome /Introductions of SAC members 
• Committee Update/ 
• 2020 Annual Report Presentation
• 6:50 - Public Comment 
• Committee Deliberation 
• Adjournment and scheduling of next meeting 

DON (Department of Neighborhoods) was accepting applications through August for new members to fill open positions on the Committee which  is composed of 15 representatives, and  alternates, including a non-management representative from Seattle Children’s Hospital. (See below for duties and membership rules.)

A full SAC committee is comprised of 15 regular members from across various neighborhoods and 4 alternates (SAC bylaws, Article II, Section 1)

Nelson said that alternates may participate in meetings and may vote in the absence of a voting member (SAC Bylaws, Article II, Section 1 and Article IV, Section 7). Alternate members can choose to remain as alternates).

According to Nelson Pesigan, Administrative Staff Analyst with Major Institutions & Schools Program for DON, there are currently 11 regular members and 1 alternate member.

There are 4 open positions of which applications were taken from residents residing in Laurelhurst, Montlake, and Ravenna/Bryant, 

"The SAC By-laws do not indicate membership percentage requirements by neighborhood," Nelson told the Laurelhurst Blog.

He added that according to the (SAC bylaws Article IV, Section 3) upon resignation or removal of a member, replacements will be appointed from the list of alternate members that has been established.

A Laurelhurst resident, also serving as Chairperson, recently stepped down. Nelson said that 

"Committee members can submit nominations and vote for a new chair at the meeting. Since the chairperson is vacant, Karen Wolf is acting as the chairperson on an interim basis." (SAC bylaws, Article III, Sections 2 and 3)

He added that "the vacant position is for the chairperson. Committee members can choose and decide to vote for a chairperson."

For tonight' meeting Nelson said that 10 SAC members accepted the meeting. The quorum is 7. 

The Children's Hospital SAC meeting that was supposed to take place on July 13th was  postponed, as was the December 2020 one, for similar reasons.. 

The meeting reportedly ran into several difficulties and a motion was made to stop the meeting immediately. First, the City's Department of Neighborhoods did not send out the presentation slide deck until the morning of the meeting, giving SAC members very little time to review the slides to be prepared for the meeting. The general timeframe is supposed to be at least one week.

Second, SAC members communicated that the 2020 MIMP Annual Report had many inconsistencies and inaccuracies and it was requested that they be corrected for the next meeting.

However, it has been reported that many of the inconsistencies have still not been corrected in the MIMP report, for the Wednesday meeting. 

Nelson told the Laurelhurst Blog "The Annual Report that is posted is the document that DON received from Children’s on 2/2/2021."

It is also a concern that the slide show presentation and MIMP report will not match and the MIMP is what is on file for the public to view. 

Neighbors have communicated that it is mandatory that the Hospital prove that the MIMP Report has been amended so that it is consistent with the slides.

The SAC expressed in prior meetings that it cannot accurately review the ongoing progress made in meeting the conditions of the Master Plan and approving it if the 2020 MIMP Report is inaccurate and the Hospital falsely claiming that they have met the Conditions.  

Reported inaccuracies of 2020 MIMP:

• Condition 15 not met as stated: “Children’s Complied with [City Council Condition 15].” (2020 MIMP Report, paragraph 15, PDF page 13):

Children’s shall create and maintain a Standing Advisory Committee (SAC) to review and comment on all proposed and potential projects prior to submission of their respective Master Use Permit applications. The SAC shall use the Design Guidance Guidelines for their evaluation.

• The SAC is to review and comment and advise the City and Children’s Hospital on the development that is occurring under the provisions of the Children’s Hospital Major Institution Master Plan before Children’s submits its MUP application to the City.
• Children’s submitted its Master Use Permit for Project Copper on July 7, 2020. Since the first SAC meeting for Project Copper was held on August 31, 2020, the Hospital did not meet with the SAC prior to submitting its Master Use Permit.
• The MUP states: “Seattle Children's submitted a Master Use Permit application for SDCI review on July 7, 2020" – this should be removed as it seems there is no pending application at the City. [2020 MIMP Report, PDF page 3]
• The Hospital withdrew its July 2020 Master Use Permit application and was to start and submit a new permit. However the MIMP report states (page 3): “Seattle Children's submitted a Master Use Permit application for SDCI review on July 7, 2020" which is reportedly not accurate and appears as if it needs to be removed from the report, as at this time there is no pending application.
• The report incorrectly states that the next phase of construction was presented to the SAC on June 25 of last year, including showing a design presentation. However the SAC did not meet on that date. Maureen Sheehan, with DON, sent email with a YouTube link with the design presentation, however that is not the same as a formal SAC meeting. Maureen did not state that the YouTube was to be a substitute for the meeting or notify the SAC of the short response timeframe.
• There was no notice in the email or video that the Hospital was going to submit Project Copper to SDCI before a SAC meeting took place. And the SAC was given very short notice in which to review the document.
• No notice was given to the SAC that the Youtube video was supposed to take the place of a SAC meeting. To the contrary, the July 1 email states “We are planning to hold the first in a series of on-line Standing Advisory Committee meetings to receive a detailed project presentation and review and comment on Project Copper later this Summer.”
• The meeting presentations states “Surgical Capacity Expansion: Project Copper – MUP paused.” However, the 2020 MIMP Report describes the project in detail and suggest that Project Copper is ongoing. [2020 MIMP Report, PDF page 3]
• It is not clear when Children’s issued its 2020 Annual Report. The Report indicates that Project Copper is going forward when, in fact, Children’s had withdrawn its MUP application. There needs an additional update to the MIMP report that in fact, Children’s has withdrawn its MUP application for Project Copper.

    

Neighbors, in addition, expresses these concerns:

• The Hospital is not following the correct sequence, in which the major institution formulates the proposed plan, then presents them, including the designs to the SAC, who review and make changes and then send it to Seattle Department of Construction & Inspections (SDCI ) who review it and send it back again to the SAC for any additioal changes.
• Hospital's process was out of order: In July, Children's Hospital went directly to SDCI and submitted their  permit which was  different than what was approved in the Major Institution Master Plan. Then the Hospital scheduled an  August meeting. However, during this time, SDCI  begun to work on the project. The City put up the notification boards up around the perimeter of the property which included the comment deadline. However neighbors reported that the documents regarding the proposed development were not even on-line yet in time to be able review and submit comments
• Neighbors also submitted comments on the Hospital's non-compliance stating that the Hospital is not following the approved standard process and that that the Hospital was trying to get approval from the City when they were supposed to first have the SAC's input whose role it is to review the development plans and makes changes. 
• One neighbor, David Yuan, sent a letter to the Director of the Department of Construction and Inspection, Nathan Torgelson, which stated, in part, that the process appeared to be faulty because the SAC had not been given the opportunity to review and comment on Children’s potential project before Children’s submitted its Major Institution Master Plan. (MUP) application to the City. This is the legal requirement of Condition 15 of the Seattle City Council decision that has not been followed.
• Concern that the Hospital's proposed development different is very different that what was approved in 2010 in the MIMP, in which the Seattle City Council approved the 20-year growth Master Plan for Children’s Hospital. The process to come to the approval included several years of Citizen Advisory Committee Meetings, multiple meetings between the hospital and LCC (Laurelhurst Community Club.) The City Council adopted the two parties Settlement Agreement some of which include: reduced square footage, no expansion of Hospital boundaries across Sand Point Way, 50 year restriction on expansion into residential areas,  height restrictions of no more than 20 percent of the campus land area over 90 feet and no more than 10 percent over 125 feet and no structure above 140 feet in height. The full Settlement Agreement is here.

The SAC duties include: 

• reviewing the annual report from Seattle Children’s Hospital on its development
• reviewing and commenting on progress under its transportation management plan
• reviewing Master Use Permit submittals and requests for amendments to Seattle Children’s Hospital’s Major Institution Master Plan, and make recommendations based on established design criteria
• providing comments on projects under development.

According to the DON website, membership is comprised of representatives from these categories: 

• A representative of an area community group or council. 
• A resident who is within 600 feet of the campus boundary. 
• A neighborhood resident defined as a resident within the boundaries of the adjacent community council areas. 
• A property owner. 
• A business person. 
• A consumer group using the services of the institution. 
• A person participating in neighborhood planning. 
• A general community or citywide representative. 

Go here for more information or contact Nelson.Pesigan@seattle.gov.