The hearing examiner’s final order included several conditions of approval regarding street, stormwater, engineering and design issues.
The project still requires a final site plan review and building permit before construction can begin. Plans call for the hospital to be operational by January 2018.
Another company that submitted an application to build a psychiatric hospital in Vancouver is appealing the state health department’s decision. A health law judge will rule on the appeal later this year. In the meantime, Springstone can move forward with the Salmon Creek project.
The nearby Goddard School preschool in Salmon Creek had expressed concerns about Rainier Springs’ admissions, treatment and discharge policies — particularly about transportation of patients upon discharge — and asked that the hospital be precluded from having patients with a history of harming others. The Fairgrounds Neighborhood Association, which had concerns about hospital operations, requested that Rainier Springs officials be required to attend one regular monthly neighborhood association meeting, according to the county staff report.
Clark County planning staff’s recommended approval did come with some conditions, many of which revolve around final construction drawings and ensuring the project follows proposed plans.