Comment by Peter Denis

From: Peter Denis 

Sent: Sunday, February 17, 2019 6:24 PM

To: PCD

Subject: 3 Storey hotel - comment period slated to end February 22

Hello, My wife, Robin Denis sent you a note (attached) laying out her concerns for the project that seems likely to proceed. Please allow me to add my voice to hers in support and to further state:

1. During the Town Hall meeting earlier this year, the land owner stated publicly that the primary purpose of the intended facility was to provide a suitable event space for weddings. This view was later supported by the architect who informed those assembled that for the project to "pencil" would require the 75 rooms to be occupied at 80% annually. The latter seems like a distant hope and utterly unrealistic. It would seem then, that this project only works if it is an event venue, as 80% occupancy, particularly during the gray months is utterly utopic (I was the attorney for the Four Seasons and Marriott chains in Canada for many years and have learned a little about this business).
2.  As a primarily event venue, parking becomes critical - both the owner and the architect were clear that the plans as currently drafted do not come close to providing sufficient parking - how could the City of Bainbridge Island countenance such a project, secure in the knowledge that this essential element to what will be an event venue cannot support its parking needs - not just occasionally, but at every event? I was corporate counsel for a multinational enterprise that ran Convention Centers and Major Baseball Stadiums, you can be sure that parking assumptions always erred on more, rather than less. To suggest that every Saturday evening in Bainbridge will be an overflow situation as a result of this venue is the very image of willful disregard for the community.
3.  The architect explained that more than half of the water needs would be met by employing gray water captured from the roof and the installation of a "living machine" like the one at Island Wood. Both of these intentions are laudable. I happen to know the inventor of the living machine and can attest that the Island Wood facility has stretched the limits of that technology. I can only imagine the demands that would be made for an event venue when significant spikes in use would be inevitable. Allowing a project of the architect, the balance of the water needs would be met by drilling a well and thus challenging the limits of the Bainbridge aquifer. How could the City Council approve drilling within the core of the city when city infrastructure is available. The notion that a project of this size could "go it alone" while denying similar largesse to others and other projects seems at odds with the basic principals of municipal governance.
4.  As a private venue, how would the City of Bainbridge Island enforce noise standards? As it is likely that an event will be held there every weekend, the additional costs of policing and administration for such a site will increase the costs to the city and thus to the taxpayers. Will the new tax base this project provides be sufficient to offset the inevitable costs resulting from complaints for noise and the regular policing that sustained events will occasion?
5.  As our recent snow event has indicated, it is critical that appropriate egress to facilities be designed into the project from the start. The requirement for a three-point turn for all trucks is 2 utterly impossible were a similar event to occur. Ignoring the question of access and egress or merely glossing it over is an immense disservice to the project and to the adjoining neighborhoods. In summary then, this is a marvelous idea for a venue outside of a small downtown core. Snohomish County has successfully allowed for the creation of numerous such venues through repurposing farmland and creating attractive, accessible spaces that provide excellent venues for weddings and special events. This seems very much like the right project for the wrong place. The project does not work in the absence of a robust wedding/special event calendar. The implications of this are striking for the community and the likelihood that this venue would become a flashpoint for civic discontent is extremely high. I urge you to deny future permitting for this project as it is currently configured. Respectfully submitted,

Peter Denis - 9321 NE Helmsman Ct. Bainbridge Island, WA