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A Hamilton Street church says it has all the parking spots it needs to run a teen center. The City Plan Commission wants proof.
That was one of the conditions the commission placed Wednesday night as it approved Church On The Rock’s plan for a 9,000-square-foot teen center.
The plan ran into opposition when it was discussed at the Board of Zoning Appeals last week. Neighbors objected that site lacks enough parking for a church and a teen center and the two businesses that occupy the building next door.
The BZA referred the proposal to the City Plan Commission, which voted to approve it at its Wednesday night meeting at City Hall. However the commission recommended requiring that the church hire a certified traffic engineer to create a plan showing that cars will have room to park and maneuver in the lot next to the proposed teen center. The commission also recommended that another public hearing be held to discuss that plan, when it is created.
The matter now returns to the BZA, which will vote on it next month.
Deputy Director of Zoning Tom Talbot explained to commissioners that the church’s parking lot is now unmarked, shared with two neighboring businesses, and has a city right of way in the middle of it.
Thomas MacMIllan Photo
“The status quo will not work,” said Chair Ed Mattison.
The church needs to show the board how a it will work in the future, Talbot suggested.
The church argued that there is enough parking. The commission is essentially saying, “we’re not going to take your word for it,” as Mattison put it.
“Without professional input, an applicant can say anything, and mean what they say,” but not have a full grasp on the issues involved, Talbot said.
“We are investigating the workability of their plan,” Mattison said.
Talbot warned that if and when the church comes back with a certified engineer’s traffic plan, it will be as a site plan review. At that point, the City Plan Commission will have significantly less discretion to change the plan, Talbot said.
Velma George, a member of the church’s financial board, said after the meeting that the church is “amenable” to the traffic engineering requirement. “We are committed to being good neighbors,” she said.