Letter to the Planning Commission — June 24, 2008

Sherrie Hovde; 101 Sherman St. NW; Olympia, Washington

It is important that the citizens of Olympia understand that the rezone process and the official submission of physical building and use plans are in fact separate processes.

It is the responsibility of our city planners to help Olympians understand that what is actually built and what the buildings are actually used for may change once the rezone is approved, and that the developer is not obligated to build what has currently been presented, nor is he obligated to use the building as currently stated.

The Capital View Building serves to remind us of this possibility, as it has many qualities (great views and location) and use possibilities (condos, retail) similar to those of the proposed Larida Passage, and yet this existing building has not brought revitalization to the downtown area, even at the height of its use.

We must then admit that a similar fate is at least possible for Larida Passage, and not only at this site, as the rezone will set a precedent for future building projects which may obstruct other panoramic views.

I ask that our city planners and council members consider this possibility, and that they remain open minded to other proposals for the site.

Specifically, that the City of Olympia partner with State Officials to explore the possibility of combining funds, and/or exchanging state/city owned land in order to turn the site into an extension of Heritage Park, thereby beautifying, preserving and drawing the public to increased representation in the downtown area.

As all of you know, planning takes time, and very little has been afforded those that would seek to construct a new plan. Please consider providing those that seek options a more reasonable time frame in which to construct such a plan.

It should also be known, that those that oppose the rezone come from all walks of life, and many own commercial property in and around Olympia.

In light of this, many of us do appreciate the rights of property owners to profit from their real estate investments, and are not opposed to concentrated market rate housing in the downtown area. Our opposition is with the location and impact of the proposed building site. We do not believe that the proposed infrastructure improvements alone can support the plan, and we as citizens do not want to get stuck with the bill for such improvements once the plan is implemented.

Still further, according to the Thurston County Geodata website, http://www.geodata.org/parcelsrch.asp significant portions of the parcels in question are within a wetland buffer zone. The currently proposed development plan (as well as the developer's environmental impact statement response) does not address this issue.

Therefore, a development of this magnitude, in this wetland buffer zone would in effect disregard the intent of such a zone as described in the attached Department of Ecology document: http://www.ecy.wa.gov/pubs/92010.pdf

If the city elects to disregard this particular area designation, it is likely that future developers will remind the city of this disregard, and environmental buffer zone designation could then be successfully challenged throughout Olympia on the basis of precedent alone.

Thank you for your time and consideration.