Embedded Files
Selected comments by neighbors are taken from the City website (http://web6.seattle.gov/dpd/edms/):enter Project # 3018711:
Comments against proposed expansion
"I am stunned that U prep has been planning this school for 6 years and neighbors were only informed once they had requested building permits."
"It is difficult to understand how a project of this magnitude is allowable in a single family zone. We are a middle income neighborhood who have our retirement investments in our homes. The proposed building is for a highly affluent private school (upwards of $33k/year tuition). A private school is NO
T a single family home."
"I am writing in opposition to the proposed development by University Prep referenced by this project number. This is a tortuous and shocking assault on the spirit of Land Use Codes in my city. While a project such as this may be "legal" it is very disconsonant with a RESIDENTIAL NEIGHBORHOOD land use codes. It my understanding that a public school or commercial development would go through extensive review and evaluation and very likely not go forward. This proposed building encroaches on a Seattle neighborhood with minimal or no regard to appropriate offsets."
"I have heard that the parking spaces UPrep is planning to install are totally inadequate. Please look into this. The school is going to be a huge change, and those cars are definitely going to impact our neighborhood. We aren't against the school growing, but they've got to be good neighbors! Make them provide adequate parking!! Not all students will be able to use public transportation."
( *** From their traffic study and architecture plans, only 15 spaces are planned while enrollment is expanded for 180+ new students, staff, teachers.)
"No amount of architectural magic or landscaping would mitigate the visual impact on our block of what looks like the back side of a 3-story supermarket with a 2nd story sky bridge and moat. It is ridiculous to claim that it would not be detrimental to the aesthetic and character of our neighborhood. It is way too big. This building provides luxuriously spacious "common areas" for students with no consideration of impacts on our quality of life, homes and neighborhood. U Prep could expand with much more modest and efficient use of space in their building design in a way that would respect the character of our neighborhood."
"The structure as proposed will be out of scale with the surrounding single family dwellings on three sides, and especially to the South. This is especially the case given the limited setback being proposed from the sidewalks to the North and West, and the small homes to immediately to the South. The limited additional parking spaces planned will result in additional on street parking on NE 80th St and 24th Ave NE. Unless adequate traffic control measures are made at the intersections of 80th and 24th and 80th and Ravenna, safety will be compromised during peak hours."
"My home is directly across the street from the project and its quiet residential setting, lighting and territorial views could be dramatically altered by a structure of this proposed height, bulk and scale, with its two-hundred additional students and staff driving in from outside the neighborhood."
"We have very serious and big congestion problems now. I have student and teacher parking on my street in front of my house now. I do not see room for 25 or more cars in the immediate area or even the surrounding larger area . There is just not anymore room. The layout of streets and geography does not accommodate more. As to the specifics to 24th where I live, these cars will be on my street giving a parking car lot atmosphere. With parking on both sides of the street it will be really tight driving up and own 24th. I have pre experience with this now on Jewish Holidays. And with NE 80th between 24th and 25th. And blocking my driveway and backing into my car which they already have done."
"According to MUP 8901959 (see below), parking requirements for the existing gymnasium are 94 spaces and for the existing Fine Arts Auditorium, 37 parking spaces are required. In the event of simultaneous events in both auditoria, 131 spaces are the minimum that are required by law. In order for that minimum to be met, at least 131 parking spaces must be available at all times. At present, UPrep has a total of 28 (faculty & staff only) and 66 parking spaces (+ 4 wheelchair designated spaces) allowed through shared use of Temple Beth Am parking lot for a total of 94 (98 including wheelchair parking) parking spaces. It would appear that UPrep is currently already in violation SMC 23.54.015. "
"The school has rarely been a good neighbor. The P patch was significantly impacted by the last renovation project. The neighborhood has not been treated with respect over the years, often encouraging parents and guests to park on the street in the neighborhood or at Dahl play field, a community resource, not the property of University Prep. Certainly the communication has been woeful regarding this project. We must grow otherwise we whither on the vine. And growth should be thoughtful, forward thinking, respectful of the surrounding environment and those who inhabit it. I look forward to significant improvements in the city's communication with us on this issue. I look forward to significantly increased collaboration and consideration of the neighborhood by the school."
"Whereas the Applicant has been working secretly for 6-years without any outreach or input regarding impacts to the surrounding impacted neighborhood, and has applied for a MUP in the middle of summer when many people are away, it is offensive that those who would be negatively impacted would have just 14-days to evaluate the project and provide comments."
"The proposed structure is unclear and many of the plans and drawings we have seen have not accurately conveyed the size of the building or addressed the impacts it would have on the adjacent properties. Furthermore, it would be removing a service we all love (the NE Seattle Tool Library)."
"What is the impact on electricity from City Light? Is the EMF on the power wires coming up 24th Ave going to 12 milli gauss. It is 6 already. The Swedish standard is 3. If so then I would have to move. I would not survive that level. How about the water and sewage. I doubt that it was designed for this level of use."
"....I do have issue with the size and height of the structure and the additional number of people it will bring into the neighborhood daily. If completed as planned, the new building will liekly bring at least 200 or more individuals every week day into the surrounding residential streets. Currently 30 minutes before school starts, I cannot back out of my drive way safely. The speed of the cars on Ravenna and 80th ST are moving too fast and with such aggression, it is a dangerous situation....Also, there seems to be low awareness that many people from Univ of WA Seattle campus park in the neighborhood and take buses down 25th AVE NE. "
" I am skeptical that there will be enough parking. I garden at the Picardo P-Patch which abuts the school. I usually go there by bike or on foot but I worry about the impact of a greatly increased number of cars on the neighborhood. This could include traffic jams, more air and noise pollution and insufficient parking spaces for residents and gardeners. I wonder if you could find a way to stipulate that students be required to come by bus, carpool, etc. If lots of the teens drive to school in separate cars, the impact could be very negative. "
"I was a bit shocked to learn recently about this project. The fact that the neighborhood was never contacted by U Prep until schematic designs were completed is somewhat appalling. University Prep already has a significant impact on the surrounding residential neighborhood. Students consistently park on 24th Ave NE, making off street parking difficult when school is in session. The proposed expansion is on SF-5000 zoned land and entirely contradicts the intended use of the residential zone at a time when Seattle sorely needs more housing. In addition, the proposed 38,000 sq ft expansion is dramatically out of scale with the neighborhood and will have a huge impact on neighboring properties. At the very least, I strongly suggest that the city subject the project to design review and involve the surrounding neighborhood in the planning process before this project is fully approved."
"I am very positive that those parents, whose children attend the school, would not want a building to be built in their residential neighborhood. So why is it being proposed in my neighborhood?"
"The planning of this project has been quietly in the works for several years, but the neighbors living in the homes nearby were neither told about it nor given opportunity for input in the design. It has been difficult to get a clear and accurate understanding of the real height, scale, or impacts of this proposed building because the drawings we have been shown are inaccurate and deceptive, making it appear smaller than what is actually being proposed and the school has not provided realistic data on the number of cars parking and dropping off students."
"The proposed land use is not acceptable to me or the majority of residential home owners in the neighborhood. UPrep has pulled shady and disreputable moves in the area before. The last structure that UPrep built blocked all of the sun from the South of the Picardo P-Patch Community Garden. The current plan UPrep is proposing is fraught with issues. They claim to be an institution, just like the North Seattle Friend Church they are replacing, but this could not be further from the truth. That church is a tiny Quaker congregation that is a single story. UPrep is planning to put in a facility for 200 students that is 3 stories high. This will dwarf all of the surrounding buildings and lead to exacerbation of already bad parking in the area. They would also be displacing the North Seattle Tool Library, a critical resource for many residents."
""From discussions with neighbors, it is my understanding that U Prep has received special accommodations because they are a private, non-profit school. This is unwise and we should review why a private school does not have to follow the same regulations as a public school. I am a native Seattlite and have lived in my house for over 20 years. The expansion of building going on across the city is shocking and the special accommodations need to stop.
"In a city that is growing rapidly, situations like this should be flagged as "contentious". Neighborhoods can tolerate change but it must be with clear and honest intention. This project and history of it's [sic] respective parties has a sour taste that is not fading with time. Taxpayers will only tolerate the needs of the wealthy over the common for a short time in this case."
"This is a great, quiet, family-oriented neighborhood. Lots of us use street parking as there are limited garages on our street. This [proposed expansion] will affect the quality of this street/neighborhood in a big way."
"Given the narrow streets and already limited street parking for residents, I'm concerning about the safety and quality of living for residents in this neighborhood. Please
provide comments on how additional parking spaces will be addressed i.e. Underground parking?"
"Additional public input and design review must be required and changes must be made before this major expansion of U Prep is approved. Citizens deserve substantially more input into this decision. As a good neighbor, the school must work with the surrounding community to address and mitigate the impact. ... With tuition ranging from $32,850 to $33,850 for the 2017-18 school year, most students are coming from outside this middle class neighborhood. Traffic on 80th Street is continuous in the mornings and afternoons before school starts and when it ends. People often speed down the hill on this residential street."
"It is absurd that the school has been planning this project for several years and just now has released its plan with no neighborhood input. This project must be denied now and the applicant could consider reapplying after it has had sustentative discussions with the surrounding neighborhood. It is also absurd that the School has partnered with the Temple to be considered as a single institution to get around other zoning rules. The School has used so many tricks to maximize the size and impact of this new facility. It must be turned down at this time."
"I am concerned about parking impacts and pedestrian safety related to this project."
"We have witnessed numerous instances of close-calls between buses, cars stopping to drop off students, and bicyclists, and the 30-plus m
ile per hour traffic that flows along this broad street. We fear that the siting of this new building, which places a busy thoroughfare at the heart of the school’s operations sets up an accident waiting to happen."
"Further, with no way to ensure students/teachers will park in the parking lots of Dahl field, many of these 53 additional vehicles will park as they please, and frequently affect neighbors' access to parking near their own homes---every day of the school week. I would please ask the City and the school work in good faith with neighbors to find a mutually agreeable solution.
"Most people I know believe that you (City of Seattle Planners) give preferential treatment to this elite private school over the residents of the neighborhood."
Single Comment in Favor of Expansion (posted as of 9/1/17)
"To Whom It May Concern: I wish to express my full support in favor of the expansion of U. Prep. It is a great school and is a benefit to the community. Giving it the ability to support more students will benefit our community. I have no students at the school currently but I do live in the neighborhood. Please do not let the small voice protesting this to affect its viability. "
REBUTTAL: In our search and review of the home address of this proponent for U. Prep. expansion (whose identity was derived via the name/e-mail/ telephone# posted on the City comment website), we discovered that this proponent does NOT actually live in the neighborhood and is unlikely to impacted by the proposed expansion, as the home address is nearly 1.5 miles away from the project, south of NE 65th ST.
Indeed, opposing neighbors who live directly adjacent to the proposed expansion believe that in addition to the linear [separation] distance [of ~ 1.5 miles], the fact that [this address of this proponent] is across not one but three arterials (25th AVE NE, NE 75TH and NE 65TH) totally disqualifies him from talking as a "neighbor". It is a different part of the city altogether, with zero impact from anything [that] could happen [with respect to the expansion].
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