On January 29, 2024, the City of Mercer Island Hearing Examiner granted preliminary approval (with conditions) of the proposed OB Mercer Island Properties, LLC., 14-lot long subdivision, SUB19-002.

The City issued a Notice of Decision on January 29, 2024, consistent with the provisions of MICC 19.15.120 and MICC 19.15.090, which include the following methods: a mailing sent to neighboring property owners within 300-feet of the subject property; a notice sign posted on the subject property; an email sent to the applicant, parties of record, and agencies with jurisdiction with the notice of decision and Hearing Examiner’s decision attached; and publication in the City’s weekly permit bulletin.

Once the appeal period is completed, the Applicant may proceed with the site development permit application process add the associated infrastructure for the proposed subdivision, including grading, installation of utilities, and constructing streets and driveways. Building permit applications would be required before construction can begin on each of the homes.

The Hearing Examiner’s decision can be found HERE.

Update
December 13, 2023 - The City issued a Notice of Public Hearing to inform the public that the Hearing Examiner will conduct an Open Record Public Hearing at 9:00AM on January 24, 2024, for SUB19-002. If necessary, the open record public hearing will continue to 9:00AM on January 25, 2024. This notice was issued December 13, 2023 through (1) a special edition of the Weekly Permit Bulletin; (2) publication in the Mercer Island Reporter; (3) a posting at the proposed project site; and (4) mailing to property owners within 300’ of the boundaries of the proposed project site.

Background
In 2019, the City received an application for a preliminary long plat approval, SUB19-002, to subdivide the 2.88-acre property located at 2825 West Mercer Way (King County parcel number 217450-2425), into 14 lots with associated infrastructure to support single-family residences. This property is zoned R 8.4, which permits single family development with a minimum lot size of 8,400 square feet.

Since the subdivision application was submitted in 2019, the process has included the preparation of an environmental impact statement (EIS) in 2020, demolition of the old East Seattle School building in 2021, easement eliminations, and other technical considerations.

The applicant, in response to the public comments received during the SEPA appeal period, which ended April 5, 2023; no appeals filed, submitted minor revisions for the proposed development by adding an internal shared driveway to serve lots 3, 4, 11, 12, 13, and 14, added a shared driveway for lots 1 and 2, and provided a passive open space easement along West Mercer Way, SE 28th Street, and SE 30th Street which is proposed to be planted with native vegetation.

With these minor revisions completed by the applicant and submitted to the City, the proposal is ready to proceed to the Hearing Examiner for an open public record hearing on January 24, 2024 and a subsequent decision on the subdivision application issued. The hearing may continue to January 25, 2024 if necessary.

Next Steps
Should SUB19-002 be approved by the Hearing Examiner, the applicant may proceed with the site development permit application process to create 14 lots and the associated infrastructure, including grading, installation of utilities, and building streets and driveways. Building permit applications are required before construction can begin on each of the homes.

Demolition of the East Seattle School began in mid-December, 2020 and is now complete..

Oct 28, 2020 - The City has issued demolition permit 1704-191, authorizing demolition of the East Seattle School. This decision was informed by the Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) prepared for this project, which examined the potential impacts of different alternative actions.

Conditions of approval have been added to the demolition permit, requiring the applicant to take measures to mitigate the impact of the demolition on historic resources, as well as other standard measures such as protecting trees, installing erosion control, etc.

Demolition work is expected to begin later this year.

Aug 24, 2020 - The City's consultant, EA Engineering, Science and Technology, has completed the Final Environmental Impact Statement (FEIS) for the East Seattle School demolition. Environmental Impact Statements are a tool for identifying and analyzing probable adverse environmental impacts, reasonable alternatives, and possible mitigation for a given action. An EIS does not identify or “decide” on an outcome for the underlying action (here, the demolition permit applied for by the property owner), but rather analyzes and weighs the impact of various alternative actions. Alternatives analyzed in this EIS include: 1) demolition of the East Seattle School building with mitigation measures; 2) retention of the building; and 3) adaptive reuse of the building. The Final Environmental Impact Statement also responds to public comment received during the review process.

The issuance of the FEIS begins a 14-day appeal period, during which appeals on the adequacy of the FEIS can be filed. For more information, please see the Notice of Availability.

The City's consultant, EA engineering, Science and Technology, has completed the Draft Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for the East Seattle School demolition. This draft EIS provides an analysis of alternative actions for the proposed demolition of the East Seattle School, and it will inform the City’s decision on how to act on the demolition permit. The draft EIS evaluates 3 possible scenarios: A) demolition of the building, B) continuation of existing site conditions, and C) adaptive reuse of the building.

City staff will host a community information session on the draft EIS on Thursday, February 27, from 6:00 – 7:30 PM at Mercer Island Community & Event Center, Room 103 (8236 SE 24th Street Mercer Island, WA 98040). The meeting provides an opportunity for agencies, organizations and individuals to discuss the Draft EIS, as well as an additional opportunity to submit written comments. Time will be available for Q&A and discussion. Please join us!

The public comment period for the Draft EIS has been extended pursuant to WAC 197-11-455(7). Comments are invited through March 26, 2020. Written comments should be addressed to Robin Proebsting.

On June 20th, the City hosted a Community Information Session on the proposed demolition and subdivision of the East Seattle School site. More than 60 community members attended the meeting, including members of the City Council and Planning Commission, as well as the project applicant and the property owner's representative. The City provided an overview of the process for reviewing the submitted applications, including the SEPA review and Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) process related to the proposed demolition of the building. The Project Applicant, Brett Pudists from Blueline, also provided details on the proposed subdivision of the property. The Owner's representative, Eric Hanson, provided some context on the owner's history with the property and motivation behind the current development applications. The meeting concluded with a detailed Q&A session during which the City and the applicant addressed many questions and concerns from the public.

Next steps for this project include the City hiring a consultant to prepare an EIS that analyzes the impacts of the project on the environment and the community, including an evaluation of the historic significance of the East Seattle School building. The EIS will also propose mitigation measures to address the impacts that are identified. The City anticipates that a draft EIS will be available for public comment later this year.

City staff will host a community information session on the proposed project on June 20 at 6:00pm at the Mercer Island Community and Events Center in the Slater Room. The meeting will include presentations by city staff and the project applicant on the review and permitting process as well as the applicant's vision for the development. Time will be available for Q&A. Please join us!