Bainbridge hearing examiner OKs Winslow Hotel proposal

By Brian Kelly • February 28, 2020 1:30 pm
An architect’s sketch of the Winslow Hotel as seen from Winslow Way. (Image courtesy of the city of Bainbridge Island)
An architect’s sketch of the Winslow Hotel as seen from Winslow Way. (Image courtesy of the city of Bainbridge Island)

The controversial proposal for a new 87-room hotel in downtown Winslow has gotten a green light from the city of Bainbridge Island’s hearing examiner.

Hearing Examiner Ted Hunter issued his 63-page approval for the hotel Feb. 28.

In the decision, Hunter said the project fit with the city’s zoning and development regulations.

Winslow Hotel — which started as a proposal for a 60-room hotel more than two years ago — is proposed for two lots at 251 Winslow Way West in the city’s downtown core, and the project is being pursued by Madison Avenue Development. The proposal has met stiff opposition, with islanders raising concerns that the hotel will add to traffic and parking troubles in downtown, and bring unwanted noise to those who live near the project site.

The hotel proposal earlier received positive recommendations by City Planning Manager Heather Wright and the Design Review Board, but was unanimously opposed by the city’s planning commission.

During testimony last moth before the hearing examiner, the project’s proponents said the planning commission’s review was flawed and should be rejected, while opponents of the hotel criticized the Design Review Board and the planning staff’s recommendations on the hotel.