Independent experts agree: closing Jefferson is not in the public interest

How many more streets can we afford to lose?

On June 22, the ACHD Commissioners will take public comment on a straightforward—and strictly legal—point pursuant to Idaho Code Section 40-203:

"the ONLY justification to vacate Jefferson is if a majority of the commissioners find that keeping it open for use by the public is NOT in the public interest."

Given what independent experts have stated publicly about this issue, that finding sets a high bar; one that involves a legal, not political consideration. See a few examples from the public record:

ACHD 2013 Downtown Boise Redevelopment Plan 

ACHD's plan refers to Jefferson Street as a corridor that "...provides key east-west connectivity east of Broadway-Avenue B and west of 16th Street (which Bannock does not)."

Planning and Zoning (P&Z) Commission

Boise P&Z Commissioners recommended denial of St. Luke’s application “for the reason that it does not comply with substantial elements of the comprehensive plan.”

The final vote was six to deny and one to defer. (2/9/15 P&Z Transcript). Each Commissioner outlined specific reasons for denial; here are a few excerpts from their comments.

• "I do think the case has been made by the public that an undue burden is placed on transportation…by the closure of Jefferson.” —Commissioner Demarest 
• "We’re now trying to combat chronic diseases, obesity, diabetes, all of the things that you all are experts in. I believe that this exacerbates that problem."—Commissioner Danley 
• “St. Luke's is an important part of our community but it is a part of the community. We’ve heard tonight from many people, we have legitimate concerns about closing Jefferson, and I have those same concerns. It’s a close call for me, but I think connectivity has to trump design issues in this case…”—Commissioner Just 
• "...what is the real cost of closing Jefferson? That analysis has not been presented yet...Against that, I set the clear, public loss of an important street. So for that reason alone, I can’t support the plan." —Commissioner Gillespie 

Safety Concerns 

The so-called 'cycle track' can not and will not compensate for the loss of the existing contiguous east-west connection provided by Jefferson. Increased traffic congestion and hazards aside, routing bike and pedestrian traffic around the proposed superblock and megastructure presents numerous conflict points from patient, hospital staff and visitor traffic (cars, bikes, wheelchairs and pedestrians) crossing the proposed lane of travel of the 'cycle track.'

• "…there is absolutely no way I could advocate for, or be in favor of shutting down Jefferson St. It really boils down to safety and connectivity, and the closing of Jefferson presents significant problems to both of these."* —Jimmy Halyburton, Boise Bicycle Project (League-Certified Bicycle Safety Instructor, Participant in St. Luke’s Cycle Discussion) 

^ Update 6/23/16: testimony reversed during final ACHD hearing, although nothing had changed re: safety or connectivity.

Walkable and connected street grid values

The 2013 Boise, Idaho Downtown Walkability Analysis commissioned by the Capital City Development Corporation (CCDC) found that:

• "Downtown Boise benefits from a quite small block size—about 300 feet square—and almost none of these blocks have been consolidated into superblocks, which tend to decrease walkability by focusing traffic on fewer streets, causing them to become too wide. The logic of small blocks suggests that no further block consolidations should be allowed, such as the one currently considered at St. Luke’s, which will significantly undermine the effectiveness of the street grid in that location.” —Jeff Speck, AICP, CNU-A, LEED-AP, Honorary ASLA Principal; Author, 'Walkable City: How Downtown Can Save America, One Step at a Time'

Health Care Architecture and Planning Perspective
In the absence of any independent analysis of the proposed expansion commissioned by local government, Ada County residents and taxpayers sought and secured the expertise of one of the country's foremost experts in the field of health care design to review and analyze the Master Plan and proposed street closure. The following is an excerpt from Professor Allison's testimony before City Council on 6/30/2015:

• “Hospitals have this implied mission of ‘do no harm’…but by fundamentally creating a superblock in a choke point in your city, they (St. Luke’s) are in fact, harming the city.” 
• "I think a cycle track is a great exercise amenity...it's not necessarily about connectivity and healthy community planning and design." —David Allison, FAIA, FACHA—Alumni Distinguished Professor and Director of Graduate Studies in Architecture + Health at Clemson University

"...as a regional medical center, St. Luke's needs to align its expansion with the needs of the greater Treasure Valley and southwest Idaho. Clearly the population center of the Treasure Valley has progressively shifted westward, a trend that will undoubtedly continue. St. Luke's Meridian campus is ideally situated to accommodate future growth; its ER is already the busiest on the state.

It's time that St. Luke's acknowledge that its flagship hospital will ultimately need to be in Meridian rather than hemmed in between a residential neighborhood and downtown Boise.

St. Luke's Boise provides an invaluable service to the community, however their growth has over the years had a negative impact on the surrounding neighborhoods. The time has come to draw the line at Jefferson St. and redirect St. Luke's future growth to the Meridian campus." —Peter Angleton, M.D.

Economic impacts
A common argument used by proponents of expanding in place involves the presumed economic impact for Boise. We sought out a professional with expertise in fiscal impact analysis, real estate development feasibility analysis and regional economics. As a bonus, we found someone with deep knowledge of the Treasure Valley, impact fee design and market research. Here's what he had to say after reviewing St Luke's Master Plan:

• "There are many reasons to be for or against the hospital proposal, however, the economic arguments the hospital is promoting in its printed material are not valid."
• "The hospital will bring the same economic benefit to the Boise region whether the hospital is fully in Boise or in several communities in the region. No jobs will be lost, no hospital services will be lost, and no difference in economic benefit will be discernible if select hospital services move just several miles away."
• "This is not a new story in the evolution of cities. Hospitals are often built on the edge of a city and they outgrow their location as the city fills in around the facility and the hospital builds a modern campus in a nearby suburban community. The doctors remain in the region; the patients remain in the region; and the economic benefits remain in the region." —Adam Orens, Managing Director, BBC Research and Consulting in a letter to KBC.

Blueprint Boise

Goal DT-C 2:

Continue to develop a framework of streets, paths and open spaces that builds upon existing networks and strengthen connections to the Boise River and Downtown subdistricts.

DT-C 2.1: BLOCK PATTERN:

(a) Retain a high level of connectivity in Downtown by maintaining the traditional street grid and block pattern (260 feet by 300 feet).

(b) Where superblocks exist, work with property owners and developers when redevelopment is proposed to re-establish the street grid and create blocks that approximate the traditional block size…

(c) Avoid development of megastructures on superblocks that create either real or perceived barriers to connectivity.

ACHD represents all Ada County constituents; together we bear the responsibility for the transportation infrastructure needed to accommodate traffic congestion.

Let ACHD Commissioners know that keeping Jefferson intact as a functioning east-west corridor is in the public interest and serves the public good.

Complete the quick and easy survey here:
https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/KeepJeffersonPublic

Or send them and email directly to tellus@achdidaho.org

Independent experts agree: closing Jefferson is not in the public interest

How many more streets can we afford to lose?

On June 22, the ACHD Commissioners will take public comment on a straightforward—and strictly legal—point pursuant to Idaho Code Section 40-203:

"the ONLY justification to vacate Jefferson is if a majority of the commissioners find that keeping it open for use by the public is NOT in the public interest."

Given what independent experts have stated publicly about this issue, that finding sets a high bar; one that involves a legal, not political consideration. See a few examples from the public record:

ACHD 2013 Downtown Boise Redevelopment Plan 

ACHD's plan refers to Jefferson Street as a corridor that "...provides key east-west connectivity east of Broadway-Avenue B and west of 16th Street (which Bannock does not)."

Planning and Zoning (P&Z) Commission

Boise P&Z Commissioners recommended denial of St. Luke’s application “for the reason that it does not comply with substantial elements of the comprehensive plan.”

The final vote was six to deny and one to defer. (2/9/15 P&Z Transcript). Each Commissioner outlined specific reasons for denial; here are a few excerpts from their comments.

• "I do think the case has been made by the public that an undue burden is placed on transportation…by the closure of Jefferson.” —Commissioner Demarest 
• "We’re now trying to combat chronic diseases, obesity, diabetes, all of the things that you all are experts in. I believe that this exacerbates that problem."—Commissioner Danley 
• “St. Luke's is an important part of our community but it is a part of the community. We’ve heard tonight from many people, we have legitimate concerns about closing Jefferson, and I have those same concerns. It’s a close call for me, but I think connectivity has to trump design issues in this case…”—Commissioner Just 
• "...what is the real cost of closing Jefferson? That analysis has not been presented yet...Against that, I set the clear, public loss of an important street. So for that reason alone, I can’t support the plan." —Commissioner Gillespie 

Safety Concerns 

The so-called 'cycle track' can not and will not compensate for the loss of the existing contiguous east-west connection provided by Jefferson. Increased traffic congestion and hazards aside, routing bike and pedestrian traffic around the proposed superblock and megastructure presents numerous conflict points from patient, hospital staff and visitor traffic (cars, bikes, wheelchairs and pedestrians) crossing the proposed lane of travel of the 'cycle track.'

• "…there is absolutely no way I could advocate for, or be in favor of shutting down Jefferson St. It really boils down to safety and connectivity, and the closing of Jefferson presents significant problems to both of these."* —Jimmy Halyburton, Boise Bicycle Project (League-Certified Bicycle Safety Instructor, Participant in St. Luke’s Cycle Discussion) 

^ Update 6/23/16: testimony reversed during final ACHD hearing; nothing had changed re: safety or connectivity.

Walkable and connected street grid values

The 2013 Boise, Idaho Downtown Walkability Analysis commissioned by the Capital City Development Corporation (CCDC) found that:

• "Downtown Boise benefits from a quite small block size—about 300 feet square—and almost none of these blocks have been consolidated into superblocks, which tend to decrease walkability by focusing traffic on fewer streets, causing them to become too wide. The logic of small blocks suggests that no further block consolidations should be allowed, such as the one currently considered at St. Luke’s, which will significantly undermine the effectiveness of the street grid in that location.” —Jeff Speck, AICP, CNU-A, LEED-AP, Honorary ASLA Principal; Author, 'Walkable City: How Downtown Can Save America, One Step at a Time'

Health Care Architecture and Planning Perspective
In the absence of any independent analysis of the proposed expansion commissioned by local government, Ada County residents and taxpayers sought and secured the expertise of one of the country's foremost experts in the field of health care design to review and analyze the Master Plan and proposed street closure. The following is an excerpt from Professor Allison's testimony before City Council on 6/30/2015:

• “Hospitals have this implied mission of ‘do no harm’…but by fundamentally creating a superblock in a choke point in your city, they (St. Luke’s) are in fact, harming the city.” 
• "I think a cycle track is a great exercise amenity...it's not necessarily about connectivity and healthy community planning and design." —David Allison, FAIA, FACHA—Alumni Distinguished Professor and Director of Graduate Studies in Architecture + Health at Clemson University

"...as a regional medical center, St. Luke's needs to align its expansion with the needs of the greater Treasure Valley and southwest Idaho. Clearly the population center of the Treasure Valley has progressively shifted westward, a trend that will undoubtedly continue. St. Luke's Meridian campus is ideally situated to accommodate future growth; its ER is already the busiest on the state.

It's time that St. Luke's acknowledge that its flagship hospital will ultimately need to be in Meridian rather than hemmed in between a residential neighborhood and downtown Boise.

St. Luke's Boise provides an invaluable service to the community, however their growth has over the years had a negative impact on the surrounding neighborhoods. The time has come to draw the line at Jefferson St. and redirect St. Luke's future growth to the Meridian campus." —Peter Angleton, M.D.

Economic impacts
A common argument used by proponents of expanding in place involves the presumed economic impact for Boise. We sought out a professional with expertise in fiscal impact analysis, real estate development feasibility analysis and regional economics. As a bonus, we found someone with deep knowledge of the Treasure Valley, impact fee design and market research. Here's what he had to say after reviewing St Luke's Master Plan:

• "There are many reasons to be for or against the hospital proposal, however, the economic arguments the hospital is promoting in its printed material are not valid."
• "The hospital will bring the same economic benefit to the Boise region whether the hospital is fully in Boise or in several communities in the region. No jobs will be lost, no hospital services will be lost, and no difference in economic benefit will be discernible if select hospital services move just several miles away."
• "This is not a new story in the evolution of cities. Hospitals are often built on the edge of a city and they outgrow their location as the city fills in around the facility and the hospital builds a modern campus in a nearby suburban community. The doctors remain in the region; the patients remain in the region; and the economic benefits remain in the region." —Adam Orens, Managing Director, BBC Research and Consulting in a letter to KBC.

Blueprint Boise

Goal DT-C 2:

Continue to develop a framework of streets, paths and open spaces that builds upon existing networks and strengthen connections to the Boise River and Downtown subdistricts.

DT-C 2.1: BLOCK PATTERN:

(a) Retain a high level of connectivity in Downtown by maintaining the traditional street grid and block pattern (260 feet by 300 feet).

(b) Where superblocks exist, work with property owners and developers when redevelopment is proposed to re-establish the street grid and create blocks that approximate the traditional block size…

(c) Avoid development of megastructures on superblocks that create either real or perceived barriers to connectivity.

ACHD represents all Ada County constituents; together we bear the responsibility for the transportation infrastructure needed to accommodate traffic congestion.

Let ACHD Commissioners know that keeping Jefferson intact as a functioning east-west corridor is in the public interest and serves the public good.

Complete the quick and easy survey here:
https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/KeepJeffersonPublic

Or send them and email directly to tellus@achdidaho.org

KBC Welcomes Professor David Allison, FAIA, FACHA

David Allison, FAIA, FACHA

KBC members and supporters are honored to welcome special guest Professor David Allison, FAIA, FACHA—the Alumni Distinguished Professor and Director of Graduate Studies in Architecture + Health at Clemson University.

Thanks to his interest in Boise's challenges after reviewing St. Luke's Master Plan, contributions from neighbors—and a little serendipity—we're happy to have one of America's most-respected educators and practitioners in the field of health care architecture.

We all want Boise to live up to Mayor Bieter's goal of 'America's Most Livable City,' so we thought, "why not bring in the architect voted 'one of the most influential people in healthcare design' in multiple yearly polls?" (source: Healthcare Design Magazine)

We took Professor Allison on a pedestrian tour of St. Luke's campus to give him an up-close sense of the current layout and proposed changes to compare with the proposed master plan. In the spirit of cooperation and fairness, KBC even lined up time the morning of the City Council hearing for Professor Allison to meet with some of the key folks from St. Luke's design team.

He will be presenting his thoughts on health district design in general, with a few observations of the proposed St. Luke's plan to City Council this evening. See the attached press release for more details.

6/28/15 Release available here. (Features bio for KBC Guest Prof. David Allison)

Former ACHD Commissioner speaks out

Kudos to the Statesman for publishing a contrasting voice to their own unsigned editorial.

Guest Opinion: St. Luke’s should reconsider expansion and use South option

BY GARY E. RICHARDSON

June 29, 2015 

Read more here: http://www.idahostatesman.com/2015/06/29/3875070/guest-opinion-st-lukes-should.html#storylink=cpy

Gary Richardson

St. Luke’s alternatives analysis for its master plan is incomplete, misleading, unconvincing and somewhat disingenuous. At least one other alternative exists that would meet emergency and other service criteria without closing Jefferson Street:

A southward expansion, replacing or built over the existing parking garage, meets the horizontal-service, connectivity and continuum-of-care objectives of the hospital’s proposed northward expansion.

It also obviates the need to take two more blocks of public right-of-way beyond that already vacated on Bannock and Avenue A.

Most of the hospital’s objections to expanding southward relate to placing the medical office building and parking garage eastward, across Avenue B. (St. Luke’s doesn’t own much of that land.) However, there is a way to keep those facilities north of Jefferson:

Expand southward, connecting the main expansion to existing hospital floors and corridors as desired.

Relegate parking, central plant, shipping and receiving facilities to the Front/First/Jefferson “island,” where they are more accessible to thoroughfares and farther from residential areas.

Locate the office building across Jefferson from the existing medical “plaza,” which can expand to the west as shown and/or provide additional parking.

The new facilities can easily be connected to the main buildings across Jefferson — underground, overhead or both.

The hospital also criticized southward expansion because it would move the main entrance and emergency department: “Expansion to the south causes redevelopment of the entire front of the existing hospital. Patient and visitor access to front door is problematic.” However, St. Luke’s preferred, northward expansion envisions just that: redeveloping the entire front of the hospital by moving the main entrance to the Fort Street side of the expansion.

Southward expansion offers several workable options for locating the new entrance and the emergency department without vacating Jefferson. There are two emergency options: a grand entrance at the corner of Jefferson and Avenue B (or farther west on Jefferson); or an entrance on Avenue B across from East Bannock.

Other St. Luke’s objections to the southward expansion were not stated in the plan but came up in discussions: The inconvenience of closing the hospital’s main entrance during construction, and the additional cost of dealing with the existing parking structure. These objections are not insurmountable.

Alternate entrances can be provided during construction — a temporary inconvenience, which should be weighed against the permanent inconvenience to the public of disregarding the important connectivity built into the city’s comprehensive plan.

The possibility that the garage location could block optimal expansion alternatives should have been considered before the hospital built it; the public should not pay for the hospital’s shortsightedness.

Most troubling is the high-handed way St. Luke’s has approached its proposed master plan. Apparently its administrators haven’t heard of strategic development of informed consent.

This entails identifying at early planning stages everyone who might be affected by a proposed action and involving them deeply in the decision-making process so they have all the information upon which the ultimate decisions are based.

While they may not agree with the ultimate outcome, having been heard and understanding how costs and benefits were weighed, they are more likely to assent.

More importantly, these stakeholders actually may contribute to a better decision.

St. Luke’s “my way or the highway” attitude has turned out to be a two-way street. It has generated sentiment that perhaps St. Luke’s should move some of its services to the population center of the Treasure Valley: Meridian.

The city should send St. Luke’s back to work with their neighbors — with a copy of the city’s comprehensive plan — to guide them toward better integrating health services with neighborhood needs.

Gary E Richardson is a former Ada County Highway District commissioner (1997-98) who has lived in the St. Luke’s neighborhood for more than 30 years.


See the full Guest Opinion here.
Read more about Gary Richardson here.

Read more here: http://www.idahostatesman.com/2015/06/29/3875070/guest-opinion-st-lukes-should.html#storylink=cpy

Context and commentary from one of Boise's most respected citizen leaders

Diane Ronayne

Tonight at 5 p.m. the City Council considers St. Luke's expansion plan. Some 20 years ago, a bunch of us got together and formed the Neighborhood Alliance, which with the city's support nurtured into being dozens of neighborhood associations throughout Boise. Our purpose was to give citizens equal legal footing in the development processes that affected the value of their property and quality of their lives. I'm very proud of the way East Enders have responded to St. Luke's proposal through their neighborhood association and the ad hoc nonprofit Keep Boise Connected, Inc.

Unfortunately, the constructive give-and-take between applicant and neighbors that we worked so hard to codify in the city's planning process did not occur with this project. The applicant's attitude when making its mandatory presentation to EENA was non-negotiable in any substantial way.

If the council chooses to ignore this flawed process AND the recommendation of their own Planning and Zoning Commission to reject the proposal because it does not meet the requirements of the city’s comprehensive plan, they will set a dangerous precedent. Citizens who devote substantial time and effort to work within the system only to see its requirements for honest, constructive give-and-take ignored by policy-makers will be disillusioned and unlikely to use this avenue again. The consequences of citizen disengagement are subtle but ultimately devastating to creating the "livable city" our leaders say they want.

The council only needs to uphold the P&Z recommendation to deny this master plan application and send it back to the applicant with instructions to alter it to meet the requirements of our comprehensive plan. This project will dramatically alter the east end of downtown, cut off a neighborhood, and add thousands of vehicles to already congested intersections over 30 years. We can afford to take another six months to find an alternative with fewer negative consequences. One suggestion: Bring ACHD and Valley Ride into the process meaningfully NOW, so the parties can include mass transit/park-and-ride as part of the "moving people not cars" equation.

See more on Dian Ronayne here.

KBC community meeting on proposed St. Luke's expansion

Residents packed the Fort Boise Senior Center Wednesday evening to participate in a frank and open exploration of the proposed St. Luke's master plan. The emphasis was on understanding likely impacts and presenting/analyzing alternatives that would allow for expanded health care services in Boise while preserving the community and neighborhood values reflected in Blueprint Boise.

As always, we encourage careful review and consideration of all available materials on the topic. Our goal is an informed and inclusive decision-making process that supports the entire community, and keeps Boise connected physically, socially and culturally. We want a livable city that contributes to the health, safety and prosperity of all citizens.

Introduction/overview

Traffic

Alternatives Analysis

Getting Involved

Questions and Answers

KBC Community Meeting

A simple update from last night's standing-room-only community meeting hosted by KBC members. The room was packed, the conversation lively and engaged.

See coverage of the meeting:

Citizens host workshop on St. Luke's plan (KTVB)

Neighbors pitch alternative ideas on St. Luke's expansion plans (KBOI)

Comments from someone who showed up out of curiosity sum it up well:

"you guys hit it out of the park! Speakers were passionate yet humble and not at all preachy.  The dots were masterfully connected and the concept of a health district and the rationale behind it were compelling."  

We hear that pretty often these days, and the support is greatly appreciated. Our aim is to present available facts and reasonable conclusions without fluff or distractions, because Boise citizens are smart enough to see through spin and draw their own conclusions.

Some in the audience wished a representative from the Mayor's office or City Council had been in attendance. We know they have busy schedules these days; we also think they would benefit greatly from a second opinion and hearing a more citizen-oriented conversation along with more robust alternatives analysis. 

We're all stakeholders in this process, and we all support Mayor Bieter's goal of making Boise the most livable city in America; we just can't get there relying on old thinking.

We were able to document the entire meeting and will share the video with City leaders.

See the videos below for additional information and alternatives. 

Build where the people and access are...

Every land-use and transportation expert we talk with has a question: with the largest population growth projected between Boise and the Oregon border, why not build a 'regional medical center' in the center of the region? When they look at the proposed expansion location we hear the same thing: 'with the negative impacts and limitations of the current site, why would anyone imagine this is an acceptable location and policy?'

Why indeed?

Economists tell us that the scale of a regional medical center means economic impacts will be felt throughout the region. Whether St. Luke's expands in Boise or Meridian, new hires (just like current employees) will live throughout the region, drawn to housing that is affordable based on their wages.

Transportation and land-use professionals know that distributing traffic loads throughout the region (or even spreading that load to different parts of Boise) would reduce or in some cases eliminate the need for complex and costly new transportation infrastructure.

To them, the East End location defies logic and best practices. Many in Boise agree.

Where else might Boise find available land with freeway access and opportunities for redevelopment?

Here's one of many alternatives in Boise: https://vimeo.com/129050335

Imagine

Click image to view video:

Show your support for a connected Boise! #SaveJefferson

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