3A Public Hearing 2010 0503 - Laserfiche WebLink

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XI. STATEMENT OF OVERRIDING CONSIDERATIONS 37. The City Council finds and determines that the majority of the potentially significant impacts of the project will be reduced to less -than -significant levels by the mitigation measures identified in these findings and the EIR. However, as set forth above, the City's approval of the project as proposed will result in project and cumulative significant adverse environmental impacts related to air quality, traffic and climate change that cannot be avoided even with the incorporation of all feasible mitigation measures into the project, and there are no feasible project alternatives which would mitigate or avoid the significant environmental impacts and still meet the primary project objectives. 38. The City Council finds that each of the specific economic, legal, social, technological, environmental, and other considerations and the benefits of the Project separately and independently outweigh these remaining significant, adverse impacts and is an overriding consideration independently warranting approval. The remaining significant adverse impacts identified above are acceptable in light of each of these overriding considerations. The substantial evidence supporting the enumerated benefits of the project can be found in these findings, the project itself, the EIR, and in the record of proceedings, all of which is incorporated by reference. 39. In the event that any subsequent court decision or regulatory action results in a determination that there are additional remaining significant impacts resulting from the City's approval of the project that cannot be avoided even with the incorporation of all feasible mitigation measures into the project, the following findings and Statement of Overriding Considerations shall be deemed to apply to such additional remaining significant impacts. 40. The Project will play a significant role in planning for a major earthquake by ensuring that Kaiser Permanente's San Leandro facilities are the safest available to serve the needs of its membership. California State Senate Bill 1953 requires that all acute care hospitals in the state retrofit, rebuild, or close their general acute care inpatient hospital buildings by specific dates if they do not meet strict new seismic safety requirements. The Project is designed to comply with these requirements, resulting in a new, seismically safe, inpatient medical facility capable of functioning in a seismic emergency to provide high quality medical care to Kaiser Permanente members, San Leandro citizens, and the greater community. 41. The Project will replace aging, increasingly functionally obsolete existing facilities at the Hayward Kaiser facility. The demand for services is straining the existing Hayward facilities. As medical treatments have advanced, those patients who are hospitalized suffer from more acute conditions, requiring more modern medical equipment for their care. Hospital rooms are now expected to accommodate larger patient beds, heart monitors, automatic dosage machines, breathing apparatus and other equipment for multiple patients. The new hospital will include private rooms with restrooms that can comfortably accommodate patients, visiting family, and efficient treatment. New operating rooms and outpatient facilities will allow members, patients, physicians, and staff to move forward using new medical developments. -20-