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HomeMy WebLinkAbout~Master - Variance - 1111 Duff Avenue - Mary Greeley Medical CenterU L CITY OF AMES, IOWA V 10 2011 RNOZI ZONING BOARD OF ADJUSTMEN CITY OF AMES, IOWA IN THE MATTER OF THE APPLICATION: OF MARY GREELEY MEDICAL CENTER: FOR A VARIANCE FROM THE BUILDING SETBACK REQUIREMENTS, : CASE NO. 11-16 SECTION 29.1001(3), AMES MUNICIPAL : GEOCODE NO. 09-02-130-010 CODE, TO ALLOW A HOSPITAL ADDITION ON THE PROPERTY DECISION & ORDER LOCATED AT 1111 DUFF AVENUE FACTS The City of Ames' municipally owned hospital, Mary Greeley Medical Center, has its principal operational center at this address. It is located in an H-M (Hospital -Medical) zoning district. The hospital is hoping to undertake a major upgrade and expansion that will include construction of a new six -story patient tower on the west end of their existing building, vertical expansion of a two story portion of the facility, relocation of the main entrance, addition of skywalks between parts of the building, and enlargement of the emergency department. This project will take several years to complete and will be done in phases. The third phase of this project will involve removing the emergency department and relocating it to a remodeled portion of the ground level of the hospital. At the same time, the ambulance garage will be rebuilt into a more functional design that will retain its access near the street. The site plans for the phase of the project involving emergency services show that the existing east wall of the hospital is 1.2.79 feet from the property line, whereas the required setback in that zone is 25 feet. The result is that the existing building is nonconforming since it encroaches into the setback for a distance of 163 feet. The proposed project will actually remove a considerable portion of the encroaching part of the building from the setback. The zoning ordinance would allow the building to be completely rebuilt as is if it were destroyed by a disaster. However, a planned demolition is not treated that way and conformance with code would be required. Because 50' of the building will still be within the setback, the hospital is requesting a variance to allow that smaller encroachment. By way of background, in emergency medicine, three departments comprise the core necessary for optimal services. These three are surgery, radiology and emergency. Presently, these three are in close proximity, so that patients transported via ambulance can be offloaded in the ambulance bays and taken directly into the adjacent hospital rooms. The planned remodeling will keep them close to each other, but the remodeling is desirable because as the spaces for those services are presently configured, the ambulances must back into their bays in order to off load patients. There is barely enough room to accomplish this maneuver, so precious time is lost. The plans show that the encroaching portion of the building will be used for drive - through ambulance bays. This redesigned access will eliminate the time consuming backing which ambulances must now negotiate, so it is directly related to ability to provide emergency services as expeditiously as possible. The east wall of the bays will not be any closer to the street than the existing east wall now sits, and the percentage of building encroaching is much smaller than at Page 1 of 2 present. The entire project is designed so that the facility can provide high quality health care services efficiently and effectively, because if essential health care services cannot be provided here, patients will have to seek them elsewhere. The diversion of patients to other facilities could ultimately result in closure of this facility. DECISION The Board considers the standards applicable to variances from the provisions of the zoning ordinance. The Board finds that the proposed variance will not have a negative impact. In this unique circumstance, the hospital's building currently encroaches into the public right-of-way by 12.21 feet for a distance of 163 feet. A planned major renovation of the facility will remove a large part of the encroaching building from the right-of-way. If the removal of the building were due to some force other than planned demolition, the building could be rebuilt as is. Here, the demolition will improve the conformity with the code by more than 70%. The denial of the variance will result in unnecessary hardship. The Board determines that the hospital is a singular and unique use, with a structure designed for its specific needs and unsuitable for other purposes. If it cannot restructure to remain viable, this use maybe lost entirely. Finally, the Board finds that the variance will not alter the essential character of the locality, since it will still remain a hospital use with the same emergency function in approximately the same location. The improved design of this critical service area will allow more expeditious delivery of services to patients needing emergency care, which greatly enhances the public good. In light of its findings and determination, the Board concludes that the applicant meets the standards for a variance to be granted. �U WHEREFORE, IT IS ORDERED that the applicant is granted a Variance to the front setback restrictions, Section 29.1001(3), Ames Municipal Code, to allow a 50' portion of the building to encroach 12.21 feet into the 25-foot front setback, in order to construct an addition to the hospital, on the property located at I I I I Duff Avenue. Any person desiring to appeal this decision to a court of record may do so within 30 days after the filing of this decision. Done this 27th day of July, 2011.. Elizabeth Erbes Acting Chair Page 2 of 2