Salem City Council helps smooth pathway for church's expansion

    SALEM — It didn’t come with unanimous approval from city leaders, but a change in Salem’s zoning code will allow Court Street Christian Church, 1699 Court St. N.E., to add a 500-seat sanctuary onto its existing building.
     But opponents of the action could appeal the City Council’s decision to the state Land Use Board of Appeals.
     As reported by the Statesman-Journal newspaper, because the church is within the Court-Cheme-keta Residential Historic District, some neighbors had argued that an expansion would cause parking problems and hurt the area’s historic character.
     Estimated cost of the new sanctuary is $3 million and a fund-raising drive will likely be held this spring to complete that amount. If the money comes forth, construction could start by late spring.
     The council vote on Aug. 8 was 7-2. Mayor Janet Taylor and Council President Jim Randall, who represents the neighborhood, voted against the ordinance.
     What was unanimous, however, was the council’s instruction to city staff to work with the church and neighbors to find a solution to the parking concerns.
     The ordinance makes three changes to Salem’s zoning code, all of which will apply throughout the city:
    • It allows religious organizations to exist in residential duplex zones and grants them the right to expand by as many as 500 seats. That is the same capacity allowed for churches in commercial areas.
    • It allows churches to count lots and parcels separated by an alley as part of their total property. This change was necessary for the Court Street church to have enough available space on its property to expand.
    • It allows churches to rent parking space as far as two blocks away as long as the parking lot is in a nonresidential area. The church’s parking lot has 61 spaces, but the church must meet the city standard of 100 spaces to expand.
     The church has been in the neighborhood since 1914 and its current building, which now has a 325-seat sanctuary, since 1950. The existing sanctuary would be remodeled into a fellowship hall.
     The council action is a marked change from a council denial three years ago of the expansion. After the council in April 2002 voted against the request, the church in October 2002 sued the city government under the federal Religious Land Use and Institution-alized Persons Act, claiming the city had disciminated against it by denying its plans.
     A settlement meeting took place in February before a federal magistrate and involved a majority of city councilors and church leaders but not the neighbors.
     As a result of that meeting, Salem city attorneys in March issued a letter indicating the city’s willingness to change its zoning laws to help facilitate the expansion.