Site plans to build a Fresenius Dialysis Clinic at the southwest corner of Hawcreek Boulevard and 19th Street have received approval.
Columbus Plan Commission members approved a site development plan from Columbus Renal Construction, LLC for the new kidney dialysis clinic. The one-story building will have a size of 10,960 square feet, commission members said.
Plan commission member Zack Ellison recused himself from the approval vote to avoid any appearance of impropriety, as he is also on the Columbus Regional Health board of trustees. CRH officials said in 2019 that the clinic would be a joint venture partnership between CRH and Fresenius Kidney Care, with Fresenius providing the service and CRH providing medical oversight, providers and staff.
The site plan was passed with three conditions of approval: a pedestrian easement for the sidewalk along 19th Street, removal of parking setback and building setback notations on the site plan, and a building elevation certificate or flood-proofing documentation. This documentation or certificated will be required prior to the issue of the site’s Zoning Compliance Certificate.
“This property does fall under the Hawcreek Supplemental Flood Hazard Area, and a portion of the site is in a FEMA floodplain,” said assistant planning director Melissa Begley. “So they are required to elevate.”
According to the staff report, the development site was affected by the 2008 flood and “many of the existing residences sustained flood damage.”
During the commission’s meeting, city/county planning director Jeff Bergman shared emails from Columbus residents who live near the site. One email contained concerns about construction traffic, trash and how building the clinic in a residential area might lower property values. Another email contained concerns about light spread.
Jim Price, the architect of record for the project, said that the building’s lighting will use cutoff fixtures and that there would not be light spread off the property. He also said that the project’s leaders will work with contractors to minimize both construction traffic and “any inconvenience to neighbors around the property,” as well as pick up any trash from the construction.
Price said that the clinic would operate from about 6 a.m. to 5 p.m., rather than being open 24 hours. He also said that the residents would not have to worry about ambulance sirens throughout the day.
“This is not a clinic where you’re going to see ambulances coming in with lights on or anything like that,” he added. “This is strictly just for typical treatment of patients with renal kidney dialysis, basically just treatments, which are about four hours a day per person. So if you see any ambulances … it’s basically delivering the patient there, dropping them off and picking them up. And it’s not something where there would be sirens.”
Price also said that the one-story design of the clinic is intended to help it blend in with the residential area. He also said that there will be new sidewalks around three sides of the development site and that these would “help with the visual improvement of that property.”
[sc:pullout-title pullout-title=”About the project” ][sc:pullout-text-begin]
The new Fresenius Dialysis Clinic will be located at the southwest corner of Hawcreek Boulevard and 19th Street. The one-story building will have a size of 10,960 square feet.
CRH officials said in 2019 that the clinic would be a joint venture partnership between itself and Fresenius Kidney Care, with Fresenius providing the service and CRH providing medical oversight, providers and staff.
Dr. Deepak Jasuja, CRH medical director of nephrology and hypertension services, said at the time that the center could about double the number of patients CRH can treat in Columbus.
[sc:pullout-text-end]
