Naperville residents assail hospital expansion plan

Neighbors who abut the southern end of Naperville's Edward Hospital campus continued their attack of the hospital's expansion plans Monday.

While they argue the hospital is getting special treatment, city officials counter that the hospital's current zoning allows unchecked growth.

At stake is the hospital's proposed 120-foot tall, 400-foot wide bed tower that would be built 30 to 50 feet back from the adjacent residential property line.

Residents, hospital officials and city staff gathered Monday at city hall for the second and final public forum on the proposal before the city council takes up the campus rezoning plan again in December.

Neighbors are complaining the city backed off plans to require a 250-foot setback for the size addition the hospital is planning. They contend the hospital is being given special treatment by having a built-in variance within the new zoning designation.

"You're giving them a blank check to build whatever they want," said Ron Haas, an architect whose parents own one of eight houses within the 250-foot setback of the expansion. "The residents are the only ones taking the impact of this development, and it's a huge impact."

City staff said there are a number of construction controls in place with the current proposal that didn't exist initially. The city's planning division supervisor, Allison Laff, said the hospital has agreed to specific design parameters that weren't in place initially.

The staff also contends that any rezoning would lessen the impact of future development at the site. Currently, the hospital can expand without council approval.

"We're not worsening that condition, we're trying to make it better," Laff said. "I don't think we've ever said it won't be impacting you at all."

Neighbors also assailed a contention that hospital officials significantly decreased the scope of their original request. Staff has said the hospital agreed to reduce the width of the initial expansion request from 800 feet to around 400 feet. Previously, the hospital was requesting room for a 225-bed expansion and with the new design, the request has decreased to about 175 to 200 beds.

With around 320 beds currently, the addition would increase the hospital's long-term patient care capabilities by anywhere from 54 percent to 63 percent.

Residents contend the hospital is building the addition at that site because it's the cheapest place to do so.

The site is optimum for the hospital because it is close to the emergency room and other hospital amenities needed for "patient safety," said Lou Mastro, Edward's vice president of construction.

When asked by residents, Mastro conceded that the state oversight board regulating medical facilities does not specify location of beds in proximity to other hospital services.

In the past, hospital officials have also said they can't expand atop many of the hospital's other structures because they weren't constructed to support vertical additions.

Hospital officials said the expansion would be needed in the next decade because of continued growth in the area. They have not submitted any plans to the Illinois Health Facilities Planning Board, which has ultimate authority over the proposal.