Opinion ID: 1965226
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 7

Heading: General Character of the Neighborhood

Text: We next address the commission's conclusion that the proposed use was not in harmony with the general character of the neighborhood in violation of § 8.04.720 of the regulations. [34] The following additional facts and procedural history are relevant to our review of this ground for denial of the society's application. Numerous members of the public spoke at the October 17 and December 9, 2002 public hearings on the society's application and submitted letters to the commission. Many neighboring residents complained that, in the years since the society had purchased the property, it had held a series of daylong and weekend long events involving crowds of up to 500 people and 150 cars. Outdoor loudspeakers had been used at the events to play amplified pop music that could be heard one-half mile away. One neighboring resident had indicated that these disruptive events had occurred every weekend, and, as a result, he and his family had been forced to move. After receiving complaints about the events, the town's zoning officer had sent letters to the society on May 13, 1999, and October 6, 2000, informing the society that it could not conduct religious services on the property without obtaining approval for a special exception. The events continued, however, and, on April 17, 2001, the zoning enforcement officer issued a formal cease and desist letter ordering the society to stop conducting religious services until it obtained approval for a special exception. Richard T. Coburn, a resident at 141 Boggs Hill Road, submitted to the commission a petition in opposition of the special permit application signed by 1253 residents from, the surrounding area. The petition expressed concern over the lack of information about the number of people who would be using the proposed temple, increased traffic, excessive noise and potential well and septic problems. Robert N. Cox, a resident of 153 Boggs Hill Road, submitted a letter to the commission stating that a Cambodian Buddhist temple in the town of Chelmsford, Massachusetts, had scheduled events for fifteen Buddhist festivals over the course of one year, several of which were scheduled to take place over multiple days. Ten of these festivals were of a type that might be held on the society's property. These festivals were scheduled to run from 7 a.m. to 9:30 p.m. on the first day and to begin at 4 a.m. on the second day. Cox stated that, in light of this information, he was skeptical that the society intended to hold only five one day festival celebrations at the proposed temple. After the October 17, 2002 hearing, the commission asked the society to respond to the concerns raised by the neighboring residents. Robert C. Schechinger, Jr., the society's architect, submitted a letter to the commission in which he stated that, over the course of one year, there would be five major festivals at the temple, one of which would last three days, and seven minor holiday celebrations. Schechinger stated that the society believed that fewer than 450 people would attend the major festivals. He did not indicate how many people would attend the minor celebrations. He stated that there would be no music during the celebrations except for chanting during a ceremonial march around the balcony on the second floor of the temple, which would last for approximately one-half hour. The only other planned activities at the temple would be weekend prayer activities and religion and language classes for groups of fewer than seventy-five people. Schechinger also indicated that, if vehicles exceeded the temple's parking capacity for any particular festival, cars would be turned away, and the society would rent a hall for that festival the following year. In its letter to the society announcing the denial of the society's application, the commission stated that the society originally had indicated that ten to fifteen people would visit the temple on weekdays, thirty to fifty people would visit on weekends, and that the temple would hold four annual festivals for up to 450 people on weekends during the daylight hours. The commission stated that, although [t]his . . . seemed acceptable, upon closer examination . . . this is a very sanitized version as to what is to be expected. Specifically, the commission expressed concerns that, since the neighboring residents had raised questions at the public hearings about the number of festivals that would be held at the proposed temple, the society had revised its position and stated that there would be not five, but twelve, annual festivals, some occurring over multiple days. The commission also noted the complaints about the previous events at the property and the zoning enforcement letters that had been issued to the society in connection with those events. Finally, the commission observed that the society had indicated that it anticipated an increase in its membership by 700 to 800 people. On the basis of this evidence, the commission stated that it had doubts that the [society was] forthcoming with [its] intentions for [the] facility. During the public hearings, the [society] was reluctant to provide answers to [the commission's] questions and provided vague information about the festivals and functions that [had been] planned. The commission concluded that [t]he level of continuous activity that will take place at the proposed site is inconsistent with the harmony of the general character of the neighborhood. We conclude that there was evidence in the record to support the commission's conclusion that attendance at previous events on the society's property had exceeded 450 people and 148 [35] cars, and that the events had been highly disruptive to the neighborhood. The record also supported the conclusion that the society would hold twelve festivals over the course of one year, essentially on a monthly basis, and that the number of persons attending at least some of these festivals could exceed 450. [36] Although the society maintained that the celebrations would be held indoors, the commission reasonably could have concluded that, especially during the warm weather months, the 450 attendees would not remain inside the temple's 6000 square foot meeting hall over the course of an entire day or multiple days but, as they had in the past, would take the opportunity to enjoy the entire site, which had been chosen for its pleasant pastoral qualities. In addition, although we have concluded that the commission's determination that temple traffic would create undue traffic congestion and a traffic safety hazard was not supported by substantial evidence, the commission reasonably could have concluded that a parking lot for 148 cars would be a significant source of noise and disruption in the neighborhood. We conclude that this evidence supported the conclusion that the activities at the proposed temple would cause a significantly greater disruption to the neighborhood than any permitted use of the property would, and, therefore, the proposed use clearly was not in harmony with the general character of the neighborhood. We conclude, therefore, that the commission's decision that the proposed use violated § 8.04.710 of the regulations was supported by substantial evidence.