Zoning administrator approves El Camino Hospital three‑story wing addition at Grant Road campus

Amber Blasinski, the zoning administrator, approved a planned community permit and a development review permit for El Camino Hospital’s proposed three‑story wing and site modifications at 2500 Grant Road, the city said at the administrative zoning public hearing Sept. 10.

Jeffrey Samura, senior planner and project planner, presented the application for a new three‑story addition—described in staff materials as approximately 42,000 square feet and later referenced in the presentation as 42,839 square feet—that would be built on the hospital campus and include two new courtyards, a connector link to a new behavioral health services building, outpatient observation units, recovery bays, administrative facilities, a multipurpose room and mechanical space. Samura said city staff completed its review and recommended approval, including a recommended determination that the project is categorically exempt from further environmental review under section 15.302 of the California Environmental Quality Act guidelines.

"The project proposes to construct a seismic replacement of the existing facility on the same overall project site," Samura said during the presentation. The site is inside the 37.92‑acre El Camino Hospital campus and occupies the space formerly used by a lab and laundry building and part of an old main hospital building that has been demolished.

Ken King, chief administrative officer at El Camino Health and El Camino Hospital and the applicant representative at the hearing, said the addition completes a campus plan first envisioned in 2016 and described plans to minimize disruption from construction. "This is the final element of our campus completion project," King said. He told the hearing the project site affords room for contractors to work without heavily disrupting existing parking or access patterns and said the hospital manages parking across four garages and surface lots and uses security and parking management procedures.

Two community members spoke in support. Christopher Pyle, a resident who identified himself as a frequent visitor to the hospital and who disclosed that his wife works at El Camino Hospital, said: "The hospital is beautiful ... I just wanna support it." Neighbor Genevieve Lerch said she supports the plan and asked how the hospital will communicate construction timelines and parking mitigation; King said neighbors may contact project staff and noted multiple communication channels including the hospital website.

Blasinski moved to approve the item based on the findings and conditions in the staff report. She closed the public hearing and noted the decision is appealable to the city council within 10 calendar days.