The Kenai Peninsula Borough Assembly on Aug. 19 unanimously approved an ordinance that would finance and approve the purchase of four Homer properties for South Peninsula Hospital use and expansion.
The assembly introduced the ordinance Aug. 5, during their meeting in Homer at the Porcupine Theater.
The first property, located within the Homer Medical District, is a .19-acre lot with a 1,028-square-foot existing residential structure, to be demolished after closing, referenced as “The Walls et al.” property.
An additional .19-acre lot within the Homer Medical District with a 1,612-square-foot office building currently under lease by SPH would be immediately occupied after closing.
The Lazy Bulldogs, LLC property, within the Homer Central Business District, consists of a .34-acre lot and a 1,650-square-foot office building. SPHI intends to immediately occupy the building after closing.
The Pacific Premier Trust Property, within the Homer Rural Residential District, consists of a 4.82-acre vacant parcel.
The ordinance authorizes the acquisition of the properties by appropriating $2,046,500 for the acquisitions, and an additional $55,000 for “related due diligence, administrative, and closing fees from the SPH Plant Replacement and Expansion Fund fund balance.”
The hospital service area board met and approved a resolution in support of purchasing the properties. Dr. Lucy Fisher also testified during public comment on Aug. 5, in support of the ordinance. She explained that one of these properties would provide a permanent home for the Serene Waters Mental Health Clinic, which lost its original location in a flood. The clinic has since been forced to relocate from another downtown Homer location due to asbestos presence.
On Aug. 19, during the public hearing, Charles Barnwell of Homer said there is a history of bluff slumping on one of the properties during the construction of the West Wing of the hospital in 1999.
Barnwell, a geologist and current Homer planning commissioner, provided a map to assembly members. He warned that if you dig into the slope or develop it, it could potentially lead to a landslide.
Barnwell recommended that if the property was purchased, it not be developed or disturbed.
Assembly member Willy Dunne said that any potential development, if proposed, would be thoroughly researched. He said he believed both the hospital and borough administrations were cognizant of the potential hazards.
“We’re going into this with our eyes open,” he said.
Borough Mayor Peter Micciche said the slope stability issue was the “only reason for the purchase of the property.”
“I think we’ve made that clear in every discussion, so I’m not sure what’s been dreamt up about what’s gonna happen with that piece of property,” said Micciche. “If anything occurs, it’s gonna be to further stabilize, and after it’s further stabilized, if there could be some usage, then we’ll consider that.”
He reiterated that by purchasing the property, it could protect the hospital from another developer potentially destabilizing the property.
Dunne acknowledged that a former hospital board recommendation to approve the parcel purchase had language that implied the property may be developed to expand parking access by the emergency room entrance, perhaps causing the confusion and concern. He reiterated that the primary purpose of the purchase is to protect the slope from alternative development.
An Aug. 14 resolution from the hospital service area board notes that in its recommendation to the borough for approval, there is an understanding that “this parcel is too steep for development and that any development would make the slope unstable.” They recognized that if there were to be a proposal for development in the future, it would have to be reviewed and approved by the City of Homer Planning Commission, Planning Department, and the Homer City Council, as well as the South Peninsula Hospital Board of Directors, the South Kenai Peninsula Hospital Service Area Board, and the Kenai Peninsula Borough Assembly. They also noted that the purchase of the property would protect the hospital from potential harm due to development and further noted that the parcel could not be developed without a rezone, as it lies outside of the Homer Medical District and is zoned Rural Residential.
Assembly member Ryan Tunseth said the funds will be paid from the hospital’s Plant Replacement and Expansion Fund or PREF.
The ordinance passed unanimously.
