Editor’s note: Due to an editing error, a word was omitted from the following letter, which appeared on Tuesday’s page, changing the meaning of a sentence. We are running a corrected version.
I am so tired of the misinformation regarding the Providence Everett Medical Center expansion plans. Yes, the hospital bought houses on the block in which they want to expand. That whole block is zoned single family residential. Did that give them a certainty in changing the zoning code for that property or was that a business risk on their part? More than 50 percent of the Donovan homes have changed ownership if the past four years. These new homeowners were not aware the deal had already been sealed with the city to allow the rezoning of that block and a major expansion. Does no one in the city care about the precedent this will set if the hospital is allowed to demolish a whole block of houses? Could the city be swayed with another slick PR campaign?
A major expansion within a residential neighborhood will forever change the distinctive character of the north end of Everett, not to mention the impact on traffic. Does anyone know of a situation where a residential neighborhood has had to endure 15 years of a major construction project in its midst?
A previous letter from Dr. Sanford Wright showed a clear lack of understanding that the residents around the hospital are not dragging out this whole process. This is a procedural process, or at least the appearance of one that must be followed by the city. I cannot understand how the homeowners are at fault for the unfortunate fact there are patients lined up in the hallways waiting for beds. Perhaps consolidating services at one hospital campus and leasing out over 100 beds to a nursing home at the Pacific campus could have contributed to the hospital administration finding itself in this situation. It is easier to point blame somewhere else than admit poor planning on its part or the simple fact that the medical community cannot accurately forecast its future needs.
Jeanne Wohl
Everett
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