Community Meeting #1 Summary

The City held the first community meeting on the proposed community facilities rezone on October 11 at the Mercer Island Community and Events Center. The meeting was attended by more than 40 community members, as well as several members of the Planning Commission and City Council. The staff presentation from the meeting and the butcher paper notes taken at the meeting are posted in the document library. The focus of the meeting was to listen to the community's questions, concerns and ideas for related to the rezone and eventual redevelopment of the SJCC/FASPS/Herzl properties. The top concerns expressed at the meeting include the following:

1. Size/bulk/density of buildings – desire to discourage development of larger facilities

2. Use – additional school, sports fields, overnight stays/boarders, residential units (desire for zero net impact from new development/uses)

3. Traffic – congestion, access to I-90, safety

4. Vehicle access and parking – safety, need adequate parking for large events

5. Pedestrian and bike safety

6. Visual impacts – need for appropriate lighting (sports fields, etc), screening, landscaping, retain existing trees

7. Impacts to neighboring properties (parking on neighborhood streets, U-turns, trash, property damage)

8. Construction impacts (staging, trucking, deliveries, parking, etc)

9. Cost of infrastructure improvements – should be borne by the development

10. (lack of) TRUST in City government to address community concerns/needs

The City Council is scheduled to approve the Comprehensive Plan amendment creating the policy framework for the rezone on November 20. The City is also planning two additional community meetings on December 13 and January 24.