Fresno planning staff move to add 'subacute care facility' to municipal code; Planning Commission backs recommendation to council

The Fresno Planning Commission on the evening considered a text amendment that would add a definition for "subacute care facility" to the Fresno Municipal Code and classify the use as an ancillary facility to hospitals.

City planning staff told commissioners the amendment would amend Section 15-6703 and Article 68 to define a subacute care facility and allow it as an ancillary use to hospitals. Ralph Kachadorian of the Planning and Development Department said the facilities would serve patients who do not require acute hospital care but need more intensive skilled nursing and rehabilitative services than typical residential care facilities provide. "The purpose of this amendment is to to look into and amend section 67 0 3. As well as article 68 of the development code in the municipal code related to hospitals and sub acute care facilities with their terms and definitions," Kachadorian said.

The amendment would add subacute care to the municipal code definitions and list it among ancillary hospital uses, staff said. Philip Seagress, also with Planning and Development, answered commissioners' questions about how the change would differ from residential care or long-term ventilator projects that previously came before the commission. Seagress said the code change would not retroactively reclassify projects previously determined to be residential care facilities and that subacute care was intended for short-term, medically directed inpatient stays (typically 30 days or fewer) in clinical or hospital-type settings rather than in single-family residential districts.

Attorney Dirk Pushl, representing a group of Fresno surgeons who asked the city to add the definition, told the commission his clients sought to perform surgeries and provide post-operative subacute care at their site. "I'm here on behalf of a group of Fresno Surgeons who would like to, perform their surgery services on people and then provide this subacute care literally on their own property," Pushl said.

After discussion, Commissioner Calandra moved and Vice Chair Bray seconded a motion to approve the environmental determination and recommend adoption of the text amendment to the City Council. The motion was approved by the commission.

What happens next: the Planning Commission’s recommendation will be forwarded to the City Council, which must take the final action to change the municipal code.