• The proposed changes are not required to be reviewed in the normal fall annual cycle as two of the proposals, Horizon Dental and Mercy Housing/Peacehealth SW, involve no Comprehensive Plan changes. The third, Cascade North, involves a proposed annexation in addition to a designation change, allowing for out-of-cycle review.
• The Planning Commission unanimously recommended approval for all three proposals on March 10, 2020.
• A memorandum in lieu of workshop for the proposals dated April 2, 2020 was provided to the Council.

Council is requested to review and make final determinations on the proposed map changes:

New Horizons Dental. 1.5 acres at 15704 NE Fourth Plain Boulevard alongside 156th Avenue are proposed to be changed from Neighborhood Commercial (CN) to Community Commercial (CC). The proposal is intended to allow future development of an approximately 7,600 square foot dental office and 900 square foot additional leasable space if the rezone is approved. The current CC zone limits any single use to no more than 5,000 square feet. No public testimony was provided at the hearing. More information is available in the Planning Commission staff report and minutes (page 6).

Mercy Housing/Peacehealth SW. 2.3 acres in the southeast portion of the larger Peacehealth hospital campus on Mill Plain Boulevard is proposed to be changed from Office Campus Industrial (OCI) to High Density Residential (R-35) zoning, in order to allow a future application for a 70-unit affordable housing project by Mercy Housing. The proposal site consists of eleven former single family homesites owned by Peacehealth, with structures removed. Along with the rezone, associated changes to an adopted Public Facilities Master Plan (PFMP) and Development Agreement (DA) applying to the campus are also proposed to allow the envisioned housing. The PFMP change would reduce the current master plan boundary by removing the 2.3-acre rezone site, which the current master plan envisions to be developed with an unspecified building and a larger parking lot. The proposed DA change updates the DA text to recognize changes in right-of-way dedication and trip vesting provisions associated with removal of the proposal area from the master plan, and amends DA exhibits. Removal of the rezone site from the overall hospital Master Plan would eliminate 278 parking spaces, about 15% of the campus total, but the 2015 Master Plan showed a 304-space surplus based on City parking standards which have not been changed. One person testified against the proposal based on concerns that the proposed development would disrupt the neighborhood, decrease property values through increased congestion, increase demand for parking, and threaten pedestrian safety due to lack of sidewalks. More information is available in the Planning Commission staff report and minutes (page 5).

Cascade North. The rear 1.9 acres of the larger East Wood Presbyterian Church property at 16210 NE 20th Street on 162nd Avenue is proposed for a change in Comprehensive Plan and zoning designations from Commercial and CC to Urban High Density Residential and R-18. Applicant Ginn Development has proposed a 26-lot single family residential subdivision if the rezone is approved. The entire church property is currently located in Clark County but has requested annexation to the City of Vancouver, which formally initiated the annexation process at a November 4, 2019 City Council meeting. As required by law, the June 15 hearing to review the zoning change will be followed with a separate hearing to review annexation for this property on July 20, 2020.

The applicant provided an economic analysis noting the property lacks commercial potential because of its size and location behind the church, and the presence of large scale, multi-tenant commercial activities directly south and southwest of the site encompassing approximately 14 acres in total. The primary issue discussed at the March 10 Planning Commission hearing and earlier February 12 workshop was whether a higher density multi-family designation would be more appropriate than the proposed R-18 zoning. Currently there is lack of apartments and a relatively limited number of rental opportunities of any kind near the site and in the upper portion of the 162nd Avenue corridor. A submittal from the church acknowledges that apartment developers have recently expressed interest in the site. Possible incompatibilities between potential multi-family development and surrounding residential development to the north and east are lessened by the fact that the nearby homes vary considerably in density and include both attached and detached structures, and except for one attached home to the north are all separated from the rezone site by roads and a parking strip.

Other considerations support the proposed R-18 zoning rather than a higher density designation. The East Woods Church opposes multi-family development at the site, and as owners of the property have established terms of sale prohibiting such development. The small lot single family subdivision envisioned by the applicant under the proposed R-18 zone would at likely provide some workforce housing. For these reasons staff and the Planning Commission recommended approval. Eight people testified, all in favor of the proposal. Two of these cited concerns about existing truck parking on 20th Street abutting the site. More information is available in the Planning Commission staff report and minutes.

1. The New Horizons Dental proposal would make a modest change in zoning (from NC to CC) on a small property alongside Fourth Plain Boulevard, a busy arterial roadway
2. The Mercy Housing/Peacehealth SW would likely provide for needed affordable housing at a location with nearby transit, and where adjacent homes to the north and east are separated by a roadway, and abutting homesites to the south and west that are either vacant or under Peacehealth ownership.
3. The Cascade North proposal would likely provide for workforce single family housing.