Laurelhurst helicopter policy under fire: Protesters rally as Seattle Children’s Hospital pushes to end flight restrictions

Approximately 50 people rallied near Seattle Children’s Hospital over the weekend, demanding that all medical helicopters be allowed to land there despite a Laurelhurst community policy that blocks several dozen helicopter landings a year.

According to The Seattle Times, Laurelhurst, an affluent neighborhood resting on a peninsula in northeast Seattle, has a decades-old policy allowing only the most critical cases at Seattle Children’s Hospital to fly directly in. The hospital is located next to the neighborhood.

With the policy, first implemented in the early 1990s, in place, 73 of 222 flights last year had to land at a pad roughly a mile away, with an ambulance transporting the child the rest of the way. A medical review committee must analyze each helicopter flight to determine whether it meets the criteria for urgency.

After a series of social media posts went viral criticizing the policy, claiming only “critically ill or injured” children are allowed to land directly at the hospital, the city, the hospital, and the Laurelhurst Community Council have all stated they support removing that restriction.

Seattle Children’s Hospital would like to end the agreement completely and route all helicopter transport flights directly to the hospital. Despite no formal agreement, as of this reporting, Seattle Mayor Katie Wilson has stated her support.

“I am grateful that there is a path forward to prioritize the needs of critically ill and acutely injured children,” Wilson said in a statement. “This is the kind of solutions-focused partnership our city needs more of.”

Seattle residents gather to protest Laurelhurst community

The gathering happened Saturday at Sand Point Way and N.E. 45th Street, with participants carrying signs and noisemakers, mocking the community’s desire to keep the residential neighborhood “quiet.”

The Laurelhurst Community Council announced it is postponing its meeting to discuss the decades-old policy, but doubled down on its statement that it is ready to agree to Seattle Children’s Hospital’s terms, according to a message on the community council’s website.

“Following a meeting to discuss a path forward, the Laurelhurst Community Council (LCC) has agreed to fully support Seattle Children’s as it seeks city approval to end the Medical Review Committee for helicopter landings,” the statement read. “Children’s looks forward to future collaboration with the LCC, City of Seattle, and community members and is thankful for the outpouring of support from the community.”

“We’re aware on Friday that Seattle Children’s Hospital put out a statement that LCC has agreed to back them in the City Council,” Zoe Mason, an activist who helped organize the protest, told The Seattle Times. “However, no actual change was signed. There is nothing in writing that all helicopters will be able to land. 
We don’t know what that agreement will actually look like or whether (the Laurelhurst council) will follow through.”

Gee Scott calls out Laurelhurst community

KIRO host Gee Scott said on “The Gee and Ursula Show” on KIRO Newsradio that the Laurelhurst fight struck a nerve.

“One of the things that really stands out to me is when I see people with a lot of money, or a lot of power, or influence — it’s the things that they fight for and the things that I don’t see them fight for,” he said.

Gee said he wished wealthy people showed the same energy for struggling families as they do for helicopter noise.

“I wish people with a lot of money and influence fought this hard … like I never heard from anybody when SNAP benefits were going away from people,” he said. “I never heard from anybody when people are struggling with child care and struggling, barely being able to stay in their houses. I never get calls from anybody when social services are being cut. My point is, I’m looking forward to whole neighborhoods using their influence on something else instead of, ‘Don’t do that in my neighborhood.’ That’s what stands out to me.”

This is a developing story, check back for updates

Follow Frank Sumrall on X. Send news tips here.