As a resident of North Bend and Forster Woods, I certainly would prefer not to have a hotel just outside of our neighborhood. However, I do understand [hotel applicant] George [Wyrsch] wanting to make use of his land. Furthermore, I understand the benefit a hotel could provide to the community of North Bend.

With that said, I am requesting that if the city does allow a hotel on this property, it should not have a restaurant. I recognize that limited food service may be needed. If so, I ask that it have a very limited menu and under no circumstances be allowed to serve alcohol.

George stated that a hotel would bring much needed business to North Bend. I agree with that. However, if the hotel in question is allowed to have a restaurant or bar on the premises, the hotel guests would have no reason to look for those things elsewhere in North Bend, which defeats the purpose of North Bend’s vision of growth and tourism.

It is shocking to me that an establishment serving alcohol could be in such close proximity to residential neighborhoods. Guests can come to sleep, and go into town for food and beverages.

Since we don’t have a clear vision of exactly what the hotel would look like or have in it, I want to make this request loud and clear. When I was younger, I had a neighbor that was killed by a drunk driver while biking home from a friend’s house. The man that hit her had left a neighborhood grill that served alcohol. Even though there are laws that are supposed to protect people from drunk drivers, they are most often ineffective.

One more example: one evening my husband and I were playing with our son in our living room when, all of the sudden, we heard a car running into several cars parked on the street. My husband went outside to investigate. He found a car had hit our cars and 11 other cars. The driver turned around and proceeded to drive up onto our neighbor’s front lawn and was heading directly for our living room. I took our son and ran to the back of our house. We found the car stopped two feet from our living room. The only thing that stopped him was a huge rock in our landscaping.

The driver was found to be drunk and he had come from a local club six blocks from our house. My point is that establishments that serve alcohol should not be near residential neighborhoods.

I believe the property owned by the Oh family, close to Safeway, would be a more ideal spot for a hotel and for the benefit of North Bend businesses. I ask that anyone involved with this decision please consider the best placement of a hotel for North Bend businesses and residents. However, if George’s request is approved, I ask you to please take my concerns into serious consideration.

Respectfully,

Susan Edwards

North Bend