Assisted living facilities still in limbo

The saga of Pinnacle Alliance Group of Yakima versus McKenzie Meadow Village continues.

The City recently received word that a decision has been reached on the first two appeals filed by Pinnacle with the state Land Use Board of Appeals (LUBA). The written decision should be received by the City sometime during the week of April 11. The third appeal is still to be heard by LUBA and there is no indication as to when that might occur.

On June 18, 2015, the Sisters Planning Commission approved the site plan for MMV senior living facility consisting of 45 senior living units and 12 memory care units. They also approved the modification of the previously approved MMV master plan, to accommodate the site plan's shifting of the location of buildings by more than 25 feet from where the buildings were originally approved to be located.

These actions were necessary because a new plan and new developer were brought in by the owners of MMV after Pinnacle's failure to obtain financing for its assisted living facility in MMV.

Mark Adolf of Pinnacle subsequently secured the empty property adjacent to the post office, between Larch and Locust streets, on which to build his larger facility. He applied for and received City permits for the project.

The Planning Commission easily and quickly approved Adolf's application in 2015 and yet no construction has begun on the project. Meanwhile, Adolf and his attorneys have been appealing every decision made by both the Planning Commission and the City Council regarding requested modification to the MMV site plan.

Adolf requested that a new master plan for the entire development, which consists of numerous phases, and new impact studies be done.

Given the change of circumstances since the issuance of the original approval, staff believed it was desirable to approve the modifications requested by MMV.

After the Planning Commission approved the modifications last June, Adolf appealed their decision to the Sisters City Council and a de novo (new) hearing was held in July 2015 regarding the matter.

During the hearing before a standing-room-only crowd, arguments and accusations were made by the appellant's attorney alleging favoritism, backroom deals, and flaws in the appeal process, which violated Pinnacle's civil rights.

Following the July 2015 approval by the City Council of the modifications requested by MMV, Pinnacle filed three appeals with LUBA. Because of the limbo created for MMV by the appeals, construction of the senior living facility, which is approved and ready to start, has been delayed and their subdivision approval expires in December.

When asked about the status of Adolf's approved project, Community Development Director Patrick Davenport indicated that everything is approved and ready to go. Adolf simply needs to pay the fees of approximately $250,000 to the City and pull his building permit.

The Nugget attempted to contact Adolf for comment on his project. As of press time, he had not responded.