Zone Change Sought For Retirement Center

Thu., Feb. 27, 1997

By Mike Prager mikeprager15@gmail.com (509) 459-5454

Sixteen acres of land along the Palouse Highway near Shopko could become the site of a new retirement center.

The developer is Harry Green, who renovated the former Holy Names Academy on the North Side and the old Edgecliff Hospital in the Spokane Valley into retirement centers.

Green said he wants to build Clare House on the South Side to provide affordable retirement housing. Some of the existing complexes on the South Side serve seniors with more money, he said.

His company, Harry Green & Associates Inc., is seeking a zone change before the Spokane County hearing examiner to allow the higher density at Palouse Highway and 48th Avenue.

Currently the site is zoned for single-family homes, allowing 3.5 units per acre. Green is seeking a change to allow 22 units per acre, which is an apartment zone.

A hearing was held Feb. 5, and a decision by the hearing examiner is pending.

Green said the 418-unit complex would be a good neighbor to existing homes and businesses because it would cause minimal impacts on traffic and public safety.

He said it will provide a good transition between the commercial strip anchored by Shopko and Albertsons and the residential areas to the east and south.

Some residents of the area are opposed to the project.

In letters submitted to the hearing examiner, the residents complained about higher traffic volumes and the inconsistency of the retirement center with an adjacent single-family subdivision.

According to information submitted to the hearing examiner, the complex would generate about 330 vehicle trips per day. Green said that is less than a single-family development on the same amount of land would create.

His engineering consultant has come up with a plan for handling stormwater runoff from the site.

Nearly three acres at the north end of the property would be devoted to a retention pond to evaporate stormwater.

If approved, the project would be built over a four-year period, starting this year with construction of independent apartments.

When completed, the campus would include 120 independent-living apartments, 35 attached-housing units, 120 congregate-care units and 143 personal-care units.

Green said he has been working on plans for the project for a year and a half.

, DataTimes

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