Hearing examiner signals approval for Harbor Regional Health walk-in clinic in Ocean Shores

A hearing examiner for the City of Ocean Shores said March 4 he intends to grant a conditional use permit allowing Harbor Regional Health to open a walk-in healthcare clinic at 171 East Chance Northeast, pending the close of the State Environmental Policy Act (SEPA) comment and appeal period.

The clinic would occupy 1,960 square feet inside an existing 23,680-square-foot retail-commercial building and use shared parking immediately adjacent to the space. City staff and local officials told the hearing that the site has sufficient parking, that no exterior alterations are proposed, and that the proposed use is consistent with the city’s B-1 retail-commercial zoning and the Gateway Corridor designation in the 2020 comprehensive plan.

The hearing examiner, Peregrine Sorter, opened the record, admitted the staff report and exhibits and outlined the applicable standards for a conditional use permit under Ocean Shores Municipal Code. Marshall Reed, the city’s lead planner, summarized the application and staff recommendations, and asked that the record remain open through the SEPA comment period. Reed confirmed the application was submitted on Feb. 21, 2025, notices were mailed to property owners within 300 feet and published in the Daily World, and that the city had not received SEPA comments before the hearing.

City Administrator Scott Anderson and Mayor Frank Elduen both described local support for the project. Anderson said two small businesses currently operate in the same complex and that a large pharmacy sits across the street. Mayor Frank Elduen said residents have sought a walk-in clinic for decades and that Harbor Regional Health will staff and operate it. Becky Leach, the city’s project manager, said the lease and hospital partnership made the proposal feasible.

Fire Chief Brian Ritter told the examiner he expects the clinic to reduce nonemergency calls that take emergency medical services out of the city for long transports, noting Ocean Shores’ older population and travel time to the nearest hospital. Ritter said the clinic could allow basic evaluations, prescriptions and minor procedures that now require transport or tie up emergency resources.

Multiple residents and community advocates spoke in favor of the clinic during the public-comment portion of the hearing. Speakers said the clinic would improve access for older residents, reduce travel to distant providers, relieve pressure on local emergency responders, serve tourists during peak season, and benefit the wider North Beach area including nearby Seabrook.

Sorter said he would leave the record open through the SEPA comment period (the examiner noted a MDNS was issued on the 19th and that the comment/appeal period closed the day after the hearing). He said, “this project, it appears very straightforward to me, and I'm gonna have no issue with issuing a decision, approving the project with the recommendations that were provided by the city, provided nothing strange with SEPA happens the next day.” He stated his intention to issue a written decision approving the CUP within 10 working days after the record closes.

City staff recommended standard conditions of approval: compliance with applicable building, fire and health code requirements; provision of adequate off-street parking in accordance with Ocean Shores Municipal Code; and adherence to any SEPA-related conditions imposed by responding agencies. No oppositional testimony or written objections were received at the hearing.

The hearing did not include a formal council vote; the next formal step is the hearing examiner’s written decision. If the examiner issues an approval, the permit will be subject to any conditions he includes and any timely SEPA appeal filed during the comment period.