HomeMy Public PortalAboutPublic Comment - Tahoe Forest Hospital Districtr4
TAHOE
FOREST
HOSPITAL
DISTRICT
September 22, 2022
Town of Truckee, Planning Division
Jenna Gatto, Planning Manager
10183 Truckee Airport Road
Truckee, CA 96161
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SEP 22 2022
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Subject: Tahoe Forest Hospital District 2040 General Plan Update Draft EIR Comments
The Tahoe Forest Health District (TFHD) appreciates this opportunity to provide comments on
the Draft Environmental Impact Report (EIR) for the Town of Truckee's ("Town's") 2040 General
Plan Update. Unfortunately, the General Plan Update and the EIR fail to account for proposed
critical upgrades and improvements to the TFHD campus in Truckee, despite the fact that the
Town has been in discussions with TFHD about those improvements for several years.
Accordingly, TFHD respectfully requests that the Town revise the General Plan Update and EIR
to include the TFHD's Specific Plan proposal for its hospital campus, submitted to the Town on
March 11, 2022.
Shaped by a lack of local healthcare, TFHD was formed in 1949 and was the first healthcare
system to treat the local community. With over 70 years of service, we are committed to
enhancing the health of our communities through excellence and compassion in all we do.
TFHD touches many communities, covering a primary service area of 50,000 people in eastern
Nevada and Placer Counties, with secondary service area expanding well beyond the Town of
Truckee. As a health system, we serve a much larger population, spanning a geographic region
of 3,500 square miles. Planning decisions made in regards to the TFHD campus will affect not
just the residents of Truckee, but many, many others.
Healthcare is dynamic and ever -evolving. In recent years, there have been great strides in
medical practices, allowing a significant shift from inpatient demands to outpatient visits and
procedures. This shift has significant benefits, such as allowing greater accessibility to
preventative healthcare, making care more cost effective to the patients, and most importantly,
fostering a proactive approach to healthcare.
This shift can be seen here at TFHD: outpatient visits have grown from 123,994 in 2018 to over
250,000 in 2021, roughly an increase of 102% in just 3 -years, and is forecasted to be over
310,000 by 2023, approximately a 150% increase in 5 -years. At the same time, inpatient and
emergency visits have remained relatively flat; 13,530 in 2018 to 12,084 in 2021. In other
words, healthcare needs in our community are rapidly growing and changing.
The demand for health care, especially in the outpatient service lines, is significantly increasing
and impacting our ability to provide timely access to care. In addition, the COVID-19 pandemic
TAHOE FOREST HOSPITAL DISTRICT • 10121 PINE AVENUE • TRUCKEE. CA 96161 • 530/587-6011
INCLINE VILLAGE COMMUNITY HOSPITAL • 880 ALDER AVENUE • INCLINE VILLAGE, NEVADA 89451-8215 • 775/833-4100
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has put a strain on essential healthcare resources needed to support our community. Thus,
preparing TFHD's hospital campus for the future is essential to support the growing healthcare
needs of the Town and the community. And, increasing density at the TFHD campus is an
important cornerstone in the strategy to meet the future needs of our communities. TFHD has
a long-range vision of encouraging health -related services to be located within the current
TFHD campus to plan for future health care needs in the most land -efficient manner and to
improve patient experience.
Since 2019, TFHD has engaged with Town of Truckee staff to create a cohesive and
comprehensive plan to meet the current and long-term health needs of the many communities
we serve, including providing an informational session with the Town Council on October 26,
2021. As the culmination of years of work, discussions with the Town, and millions of public
dollars invested, TFHD submitted a Specific Plan proposal on March 11, 2022. We proposed all
TFHD parcels be rezoned to create a unified Public Facilities zone with a TFHD Specific Plan
Overlay that includes changes to the development regulations, allowing for increased density.
We believe that the proposed Specific Plan will allow TFHD to effectively and efficiently plan for
the future. A copy of the justification letter and the submittal is attached.
To date, TFHD has yet to receive feedback or comment from Town staff on the Specific Plan
proposal. This radio silence is more than troubling. Our concern is confounded by the fact that,
for reasons unknown to us, TFHD's plans to provide much -needed expanded capacity at its
campus are not included in the Town's 2040 General Plan or analyzed in the DEIR.
The 2040 General Plan as proposed will make it impossible for TFHD to implement its long-term
vision for the campus, and TFHD will have to direct its growth elsewhere in order to provide
adequate health care capacity to the region. We do not advocate for sprawling healthcare and
piecemeal development, which is why the Specific Plan proposal clusters development on
campus, providing for smarter planning and a myriad of benefits to the community and
patients. However, with the delay in meaningful progress to meet future needs, this is a pivotal
time in which that may be the only viable option.
Access to quality healthcare is one of the most important gifts we can bring to our broad
community and visitors. The Town's lack of attention to further this effort may extend negative
impacts to our community members now and in the years to come.
It is through this prism, we advocate for our current and future patients and request inclusion
in the 2040 General Plan and analysis in the EIR document.
On Behalf Of Tahoe Forest Hospital District,
Harry Weis
President & Chief Executive Officer
Tahoe Forest Hospital District
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