At 6:00PM on August 15, 2022 there will be a Zoom meeting, to take public comment on the SEPA process for the demolition permit of the Masonic Home. The consultant (ESA) will be there, as well as the City SEPA official, Denise Lathrop. You need to sign up in advance and read up here: https://desmoineswa.gov/zenitheis.
To prepare, you can, well, first things first, actually read that page carefully. And then you can…
#1. Read the Environmental Checklist filled out by the owner.
This gives you a ton of information on how the owner perceives the project. Perhaps your most useful tool for giving you ideas on what to comment on.
https://jcharrisfordesmoines.com/wp-content/uploads/SEPA-Landmark-on-the-Sound.pdf
#2. Watch the City’s SEPA Official explain the process…
On 5 May, 2022, the Des Moines City Council received a briefing on the SEPA process for the Masonic Home Demolition, with follow-up questions. Here is the discussion from Susan Cezar, who was SEPA official at the time. Ultimately, it is the SEPA Official who will decide whether or not to grant the permit, or what mitigation approach will be taken.
#3. Read The Environmental Consultant’s Contract
And here is the contract with ESA, the consultants running the study on behalf of the owner. Note the spreadsheet with a list of subcontractors at the end. Each sub has a different area of expertise and a certain number of hours allocated and that can be helpful in understanding what they expect to study. If there are important specialties you do not see on this list? Say so!
ESA Contract for Masonic Demolition SEPA
#4. Watch the first public meeting…
Watching the first round of public commenters has two huge benefits.
A. It should give you plenty of ideas on what to do/what not to do.
B. Remember: this second public meeting is a gift you should not pass up, due to an error made by the consultant. And that is also something you can comment on… the process itself.
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- If you live nearby, has everyone in your neighbourhood been notified?
- Do you feel that you have received adequate information on the process?
- Do you feel that the public engagement has been good/bad/indifferent? How could it be better?
- If the first public meeting was not what you’d hoped, you can comment at this upcoming meeting on how future public engagement should work.
#5. Watch the second SEPA Public Comment meeting…
#6. Learn about prior permitting…
And that includes the current permits #LUA2019-0032, which includes a great historical review of the building by David Peterson Consulting
#7. You can look at some piccies…
…and read some interesting history…
#6. You can watch me scream at you for two minutes…
…about the City Council’s role in the process at this point. Always a good time, of course. But the real reason to watch this is because many of you continue to misunderstand the City Council’s role in the current process.
#8. Phone A Friend…
After you come up with your comment, do what they used to do on that TV show Who Wants To Be A Millionaire. Phone A Friend. Ask them if what you wrote sounds about right. And if they give you any (cough) ‘notes’, then ask them if they signed up, Mr. Smartypants. 🙂
#9. If your dog dies…
(What’s that old joke about playing a country song backwards… yer truck starts, yer wife comes home, yer dog returns to life. 😀 )
If by some cruel twist of fate you miss the meeting, do not despair. You still have until August 25th to submit a written comment. But since you read the page in Item #1, you already knew that, of course. 😉
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