CITY OF BELLAIRE
CITY COUNCIL
Minutes of Meeting
September 22, 2003
I. SPECIAL SESSION (EXECUTIVE SESSION) –
6:30 P.M.
A. CALL
TO ORDER AND ANNOUNCEMENT OF A QUORUM – Mayor
Mary Ann Goode.
Mayor
Mary Ann Goode called the Bellaire City Council to order at 6:30 p.m.
on Monday, September 22, 2003.
The Bellaire City Council met at that time and on that date in Special
Session for the purpose of convening into Executive Session to
deliberate the possible purchase of real property to be utilized for parkland. The Special Session was called to
order in the Council Chamber, First Floor of City Hall, 7008 South Rice Avenue,
Bellaire, Texas. Mayor Goode announced
that a quorum was present consisting of herself and the following members of
City Council:
Mayor Pro Tem Phil Nauert, Position No. 1;
Councilman
John F. Monday, Position No. 2;
Councilwoman
Cynthia Siegel, Position No. 3;
Councilwoman
Debra Marz Davison, Position No. 4;
Councilman
Pat McLaughlan, Position No. 5; and
Councilwoman
Alexia Sidney, Position No. 6.
Other officials present were City
Manager Bernard M. Satterwhite, Jr., City Attorney Alan P. Petrov, and City
Clerk Tracy L. Dutton.
B. CONVENE
in Executive Session (Closed
Session) under the Texas Government Code, Chapter 551, Open Meetings Act,
Section 551.072, Deliberations about Real Property, for purposes of
discussing the possible purchase of property within the corporate limits of the
City of Bellaire, Texas, to be utilized for parkland.
Motion: A motion was made by Councilwoman Alexia Sidney
and seconded jointly by Mayor Pro Tem Phil Nauert and Councilman
John F. Monday to convene in Executive Session (Closed Session) under
the Texas Government Code, Chapter 551, Open Meetings Act, Section 551.072,
Deliberations about Real Property, for purposes of discussing the possible
purchase of property within the corporate limits of the City of Bellaire,
Texas, to be utilized for parkland.
Vote: Motion carried unanimously on a 7-0 vote.
The Bellaire City
Council convened in the Council Conference Room, First Floor of City Hall, 7008
South Rice Avenue, Bellaire, Texas, for the closed portion of this Special
Session.
C. RECONVENE (Open Session) and take
action, if any, on items discussed in Executive Session.
The Bellaire City Council reconvened
in Open Session in the Council Chamber, First Floor of City Hall, 7008 South
Rice Avenue, Bellaire, Texas, at 6:55 p.m. on Monday, September 22, 2003.
Motion: A motion was made by
Councilwoman Cynthia Siegel and seconded by Councilwoman Alexia Sidney
to give the authority to the City Manager of the City of Bellaire, Texas,
to negotiate with the owners for a piece of property to be utilized by the City
of Bellaire, Texas, as parkland.
Vote: Motion carried unanimously on
a 7-0 vote.
D.
ADJOURNMENT.
Motion: A motion was made by
Councilwoman Alexia Sidney and seconded by Mayor Pro Tem Phil Nauert
to adjourn the Special Session (Executive Session) at 6:55 p.m.
on Monday, September 22, 2003.
Vote: Motion carried unanimously on
a 7-0 vote.
II. SPECIAL SESSION (PUBLIC HEARING) – 7:00
P.M.
A. CALL TO ORDER AND ANNOUNCEMENT OF A
QUORUM – Mayor Mary Ann Goode.
Mayor Mary Ann Goode called the
Bellaire City Council to order at 7:02 p.m. on Monday, September 22,
2003. The Bellaire City Council met
at that time and on that date in Special Session for the purpose of
holding a Public Hearing to receive oral and written comments regarding an
application and request submitted by St. Mark Coptic Orthodox Church for a
specific use amendment to construct improvements to their church campus located
at 424, 500, and 502 Mulberry Lane, Bellaire, Texas, in the R-1 Residential
Zoning District. Mayor Goode announced
that a quorum was present consisting of herself and the following members of
City Council:
Mayor
Pro Tem Phil Nauert, Position No. 1;
Councilman
John F. Monday, Position No. 2;
Councilwoman
Cynthia Siegel, Position No. 3;
Councilwoman
Debra Marz Davison, Position No. 4;
Councilman
Pat McLaughlan, Position No. 5; and
Councilwoman Alexia Sidney,
Position No. 6.
Other officials present were City
Manager Bernard M. Satterwhite, Jr., City Attorney Alan P. Petrov, and City
Clerk Tracy L. Dutton.
B. READING OF NOTICE OF PUBLIC HEARING – City
Clerk Tracy L. Dutton.
City Clerk Tracy L. Dutton read
the Notice of Public Hearing in its entirety as follows:
Notice is hereby given that
the City Council of the City of Bellaire, Texas, has called, by Ordinance No.
03-057, a Public Hearing before the City Council of the City of Bellaire,
Texas, on Monday, September 22, 2003, at 7:00 p.m. in the Council Chamber,
First Floor of City Hall, 7008 South Rice Avenue, Bellaire, Texas, at which
time any and all persons desiring to be heard will be heard on or in connection
with any matter or question involving the application and request filed by St.
Mark Coptic Orthodox Church for a specific use amendment to the Code of
Ordinances of the City of Bellaire, Texas, Chapter 24, Planning and Zoning
Regulations, Article IX, Specific Use Amendments, to construct the following
improvements to the church campus located at 424, 500, and 502 Mulberry Lane,
Bellaire, Texas, in the R-1 Residential Zoning District:
·
Chapel (consisting of 10,437 square feet);
·
Fellowship Hall/Gymnasium (consisting of 5,212
square feet); and
·
Administration Building (consisting of 3,783 square
feet);
said property being
legally described as:
A total area of
approximately 3.3286 acres out of Lot 23, Block 1, Westmoreland Farms
Amended First Subdivision, a subdivision of record in Volume 3, Page 60,
Harris County Map Records (H.C.M.R.), Bellaire, Harris County, Texas.
Prior to the Public
Hearing, any person may review the application for a specific use amendment at
the City of Bellaire’s Office of Community Development, City Hall, 7008 South
Rice Avenue, Bellaire, Texas, from 8:00 a.m. until 5:00 p.m., Monday through
Friday, except for holidays.
Dated this the 4th
day of August, 2003.
Tracy
L. Dutton, City Clerk
City
of Bellaire, Texas
City Clerk Dutton advised
that the Notice of Public Hearing was published in the Southwest News
on Tuesday, September 2, 2003, and posted on the City’s bulletin board on
Friday, September 5, 2003. In addition,
letters were mailed to all property owners within 200 feet of the site on which
the specific use amendment was requested.
C. SUMMARY OF PUBLIC HEARING PROCEDURE – City
Manager Bernard M. Satterwhite, Jr.
City Manager Bernard M.
Satterwhite, Jr., summarized the Public Hearing procedure as follows:
During this evening’s Public
Hearing, a brief presentation will be given by representatives from St. Mark
Coptic Orthodox Church, the “Applicant,” regarding their application and
request for a specific use amendment to the Code of Ordinances of the City
of Bellaire, Texas, Chapter 24, Planning and Zoning Regulations, Article IX,
Specific Use Amendments, to construct improvements to the church campus
located at 424, 500, and 502 Mulberry Lane, Bellaire, Texas, in the R-1
Residential Zoning District. The
presentation will be limited to 15 minutes.
At the conclusion of the presentation,
the Mayor and City Council will have an opportunity to ask questions of the
Applicant regarding their request.
At the conclusion of the question and
answer session, the Mayor will recognize citizens or other interested parties
who have completed the sign-in sheet prior to commencement of the meeting. Comments will be limited to six (6) minutes
for each individual.
Following comments from citizens or
other interested parties, the Mayor will close the Public Hearing. Public comment will not be received
following the close of the Public Hearing.
Written comments may be submitted to the City Council, c/o the City
Clerk, prior to final deliberation on this matter. It is anticipated that this matter will be deliberated before
City Council on October 6, 2003.
The sign-in sheet and written comment
sheets have been provided at the entrance to the Council Chamber.
D.
PRESENTATION REGARDING AN APPLICATION AND REQUEST
SUBMITTED BY ST. MARK COPTIC ORTHODOX CHURCH FOR A SPECIFIC USE AMENDMENT TO
THE CODE OF ORDINANCES OF THE CITY OF BELLAIRE, TEXAS, CHAPTER 24, PLANNING
AND ZONING REGULATIONS, ARTICLE IX, SPECIFIC USE AMENDMENTS, TO CONSTRUCT
THE FOLLOWING IMPROVEMENTS TO THE CHURCH CAMPUS LOCATED AT 424, 500, AND 502
MULBERRY LANE, BELLAIRE, TEXAS, IN THE R-1 RESIDENTIAL ZONING DISTRICT: CHAPEL (CONSISTING OF 10,437 SQUARE FEET);
FELLOWSHIP HALL/GYMNASIUM (CONSISTING OF 5,212 SQUARE FEET); AND ADMINISTRATION
BUILDING (CONSISTING OF 3,783 SQUARE FEET) – Representative(s) from St.
Mark Coptic Orthodox Church.
Awad Eskander, AIA,
Paradigm Consulting, 903 Redcedar Way Drive, Coppell, Texas 75019, advised
that he was employed by Paradigm Consulting and was the architect for the St.
Mark Coptic Orthodox Church (“Church”).
The goal of Paradigm Consulting with respect to this project was to
update the church campus by giving it a cohesive look that would blend better
with the neighborhood on Mulberry Lane.
One of the existing
buildings, the old Baptist church, had flooded twice and a decision was made
that the building should be eliminated, along with an existing residence and
detached garage. The proposed new
Chapel would be built in the area vacated by the existing structures.
A design plan was
submitted to the Planning and Zoning Commission (“Commission”) initially and
approved unanimously with approximately nine (9) recommendations or
conditions. Mr. Eskander advised that
the Church had tried very hard to address and meet the recommendations
suggested by the Commission.
The design proposal or
plan originally submitted contained 154 parking spaces in the rear of the
Church’s property. The Commission
advised that since 110 parking spaces were required by City ordinance based on
the capacity of the Chapel, all 110 of those spaces had to exist on property
wholly owned by the Church. The
proposal or plan was, therefore, redesigned to include 110 spaces on the
Church’s wholly owned property. The
formula used to determine the number of parking spaces required under the
City’s ordinance was one parking space for every three seats. Since the capacity of the Chapel was 330
seats, 110 parking spaces were required.
In addition, Mr. Eskander advised that the Church had a long-term lease
(i.e., 15 years) with Reliant Energy to utilize an easement connected to the
Church’s property that would allow for an additional 65 parking spaces. By using this easement, the Church could
provide a total of 175 parking spaces.
Another condition
requested by the Commission was that the Church push its Chapel back 80’ from
the front of the property. In order to
ensure continuity with abutting property owned by the Nobletts, the Church
decided to push the Chapel back 85’, thereby exceeding the Commission’s
request.
Mr. Eskander advised
that many concerns expressed by neighbors related to flooding on Mulberry
Lane. In order to obtain approval from
the City of Bellaire, it was necessary to design and install a retention system
or pond. Initially, the design included
one large storm retention pond. In
order to comply with the Commission’s request to set the Chapel back further
from the front property line, it became necessary to split the large storm
retention pond into two—one to be located behind the new Chapel and the other
to be located to the side of the Chapel.
In essence, the two storm retention ponds would eliminate or reduce the
possibility for flooding in the immediate neighborhood.
Additionally, it was
noted that an 84” pipe currently existed and ran north to south to the railroad
track at the right of the property. An
18” pipe also existed that ran east to west from the two Mulberry Lane inlets
and dumped any water to the 84” pipe.
The referenced 18” pipe existed in an easement immediately under the
Church’s future building. The Church
asked the City for permission to move the 18” pipe to the edge of their
property. The Commission subsequently
advised that an 18” pipe was no longer sufficient, so the Church opted to
install a 24” pipe to accommodate the run-off of 8.26 acres of property other than
that owned by the Church (i.e., properties on the other side of Mulberry
Lane). The Church had done so
successfully, however, Claunch & Miller, Inc., advised that a 24” pipe was
not sufficient due to the velocity of the pipe. The Church, therefore, submitted a design plan with a 36” pipe,
and that plan was approved. The Church
did ask the City if the cost difference between an 18” pipe (as currently
existed) and a 36” pipe (as approved) could be shared. The City advised that the Church would have
to incur the entire cost if the pipe were to be moved. The entire process for approval of the
Church’s design plan took eight (8) months.
The Commission stated
that the height restriction was 40’, so the elevation of the Church was lowered
to accommodate their cross within the maximum height restriction.
Mr. Eskander presented
a number of slides that depicted the design plans for various buildings on the
Church campus. He stated that there
would be no parking in the front of the Church campus. He also presented one slide that depicted
the Church as it currently existed and noted that the improvements would
enhance the value of Mulberry Lane.
The finish and style
designed for the Church was chosen so that the Church would blend in with the
finishes and styles in existence on Mulberry Lane. For example, a copper tone roof and stucco siding were cited as
materials to be used for the construction of the Church.
Mr. Eskander concluded
and described the floor plan of the St. Mark Coptic Orthodox Church. Off of the entrance to the chapel were a
Lobby, Bride’s Room, small office, toilets for men and women, a Baptistery, Cry
Room (or Nursery), Altars, Bishop’s Throne, Pulpit, and two Communion
Rooms. The area remaining for pews was
only 4,300 square feet. The building,
in its entirety, was 10,000 square feet.
It was noted that all of the requirements of the Commission were
complied with. Approvals had been
obtained from the City’s Fire Marshal, Chief of Police, Public Works
Department, and Claunch & Miller, Inc.
Two separate neighborhood meetings were held by the Church to solicit
input from their neighbors along Mulberry Lane (one was held in the Church and
the other was held in a neighbor’s home).
Those comments were taken into consideration by the Church. Everything that was in the Church’s power to
be done in order to respect the neighbors along Mulberry Lane had been done.
E. QUESTIONS FROM THE MAYOR AND CITY
COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF BELLAIRE, TEXAS – Mayor Mary Ann Goode.
Mayor Mary Ann Goode noted that
the process followed to apply for a specific use amendment was a lengthy
process. The Commission had held a
Public Hearing on the specific use amendment and, by letter dated May 14, 2003,
recommended that the request for a specific use amendment be approved
conditioned upon ten (10) specific items that the Church indicated had been
addressed.
In addition, City Council was not only
constrained by City ordinances and the Comprehensive Plan, but also by
state and federal statutes that were designed specifically to address religious
institutions. Mayor Goode called on
City Attorney Alan P. Petrov prior to receiving questions and answers from the
Mayor and City Council for an explanation with regard to the existing state and
federal statutes that addressed religious institutions.
City Attorney Alan P. Petrov stated
that there were state and federal constitutional requirements that were
applicable to zoning applications by religious institutions, such as the
Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act (“Act”). The Act imposed certain requirements and
restrictions upon cities.
It was important to
note that the Texas courts had stated that a city could not prohibit a church
from locating in any particular neighborhood or zoning district. A church was a compatible use in a
residential zone. Texas courts had also
ruled that not only were churches compatible uses in residential zones, but an
essential use as there was no better place for a church than in a residential
neighborhood.
The Texas courts
balanced any inconvenience that a neighborhood might experience with the fact
that churches were protected by the federal constitution. Courts had recognized that there would be
traffic and congestion associated with churches, however, that was a natural
aspect of a congregation. Such
inconveniences by themselves were not substantial enough to warrant the denial
of a church’s request to be located in a residential neighborhood.
{Tape ended at this
point}
City Attorney Petrov
continued and noted that neighborhoods must put up with inconveniences in
order to have freedom of religion—which was a constitutionally protected aspect
of our society.
Finally, it was
important to remember that the Act specifically stated that a city could not
impose any more restrictive requirements on religious institutions than would
be imposed on any other institution, residence, or business. When a zoning application was reviewed, the
City had to apply its Zoning Code fairly to determine whether or not the
application met all of the requirements of the Code, such as height, parking,
coverage, etc.
Mayor Pro Tem Phil
Nauert presented the following questions to the Applicant:
Q: With respect to parking requirements
or needs, he asked for confirmation that the Commission had required one
parking space for each three seats in the Chapel. He also inquired as to how many seats would exist in the Chapel.
A: Awad Eskander responded that the
Commission had required one parking space for each three seats in the Chapel,
and the Church had designed the Chapel for 330 seats.
Q: An inquiry was made as to how many
additional persons might be present for a service, such as communicants,
ministers, attendants in the Cry Room, employees in the Church, etc.
A: Awad Eskander advised that the full
capacity of the Chapel was 330 persons.
The membership of the Church was not expected to expand or mushroom by
the new Chapel.
Q: An inquiry was made as to the
maximum capacity of the Chapel if, for example, growth were to occur.
A: Awad Eskander advised that the
current membership was less than 330, however, the design was based on 330
persons in order to accommodate guests in a wedding situation, larger crowds on
Christmas Eve, and larger crowds in attendance for special events.
It was noted that
the Bishop in charge of the Diocese had a policy wherein new chapels would be
started up in other areas of Houston rather than expanding existing chapels.
Q: An inquiry was made as to the
maximum capacity of the Chapel with respect to the Fire Code. Further, an inquiry was made as to whether
the Fire Marshal had discerned the exact number of occupants allowed.
A: Awad Eskander advised that the
maximum capacity of the Chapel would be 330.
Mr. Eskander was uncertain as to whether the Fire Marshal had discerned
the exact number of occupants, but noted that the Fire Marshal had reviewed the
Church’s plans.
Councilman John F.
Monday presented the following questions to the Applicant:
Q: With respect to parking
availability, the site plan indicated that there were 32 compact car
spaces. An inquiry was made as to the
measurement of those spaces. The
measurement for all other parking spaces was noted to be 9’ X 18’.
A: Awad Eskander advised that the
measurements for all parking spaces were determined based on City
ordinances. The compact car space was
7’ X 16’.
Q: An inquiry was made as to the
Church’s plans to mitigate traffic congestion on service days or other heavier
traffic days when the congregation might rise to full capacity.
A: Awad Eskander advised that the
Church Administration had hired an off-duty Bellaire Police Officer to regulate
traffic on Sunday service days. When
other situations warranted, such as weddings, funerals, or special events, an
off-duty Bellaire Police Officer would be hired. He advised that with the new capacity of 175 parking spaces,
on-street parking should be eliminated.
Q: With respect to the storm retention
ponds, an inquiry was made as to the depth of those ponds.
A: City Manager Satterwhite advised
that the measurements were included in the packet and were based on water
elevations, therefore, the depth somewhat varied.
Awad Eskander stated that the
ponds were approximately 4-5’ deep with slanted walls.
Q: In order to further address the
concerns regarding traffic congestion, an inquiry was made as to whether
the storm retention ponds could be used for parking during high traffic
periods.
A: City Manager Satterwhite stated that
he did not have a clear answer to that question, but would guess that the storm
retention ponds could not be used. With
the exception of possible drought times, he believed that the storm retention
ponds would have some water in them.
Councilwoman Cynthia
Siegel presented the following questions to the Applicant:
Q: An inquiry was made as to a
description of the various phases to be undertaken during construction.
A: Awad Eskander advised that, as of
this time, all construction was intended to be included in one phase. If the project had to be phased, a timeline
would be developed.
Q: It was noted that a suggestion had
been made for Church members and visitors to enter the Church campus on the
south side. An inquiry was made as to
what the final determination was with respect to ingress and egress.
A: Awad Eskander stated that several
situations were studied with respect to ingress and egress. There was a small drop-off drive located in
front of the Chapel, but no parking was allowed. Therefore, a traffic conflict could occur in front of the Chapel
if vehicles had to turn around to enter Mulberry Lane again in order to reach
the south entrance for parking. Since
the vehicle would leave the drop-off drive and park, the vehicle would use the
north drive as entry and the south drive as an exit.
The Church explained their theory to
the traffic engineers, and the current pattern for ingress and egress was
approved.
Q: An inquiry was made as to whether
there would be landscaping along the 8’ fences to be installed on the north and
south sides of the Church property.
A: Awad Eskander stated that there
would be landscaping along the fencing.
An extensive landscape plan had been prepared such that the neighbors,
primarily on the north side, would be shielded and buffered. A canopy of trees would be planted as
well. It was noted that a canopy of
trees currently existed on the south side of the property. In addition, the green space area between
the Church campus and neighbors had been expanded.
Councilwoman Debra
Marz Davison advised that her inquiries were related to traffic congestion
and mitigation and had already been answered by the Applicant.
Councilman Pat
McLaughlan referenced the excellent drainage plan developed by the Church
and noted that the Church would not only drain its own property, but an
additional eight (8) acres of surrounding residential property.
Councilwoman Alexia
Sidney presented the following question to the Applicant:
Q: Assuming the structure was lit at
night, an inquiry was made as to whether any of the neighbors would be
affected.
A: Awad Eskander advised that lighting
poles would be mounted in the center of the parking lot rather than along the
edge of the parking lot in order to accommodate their neighbors. The light fixture would have a cut-off on it
wherein the light would not shine or glare beyond the property line. A low light would be used along the
driveways, and a short pole (20’) would be mounted in the middle of the back
parking lot.
Councilwoman Cynthia
Siegel presented the following additional questions to the Applicant:
Q: An inquiry was made as to how many
vehicles could stack up in the drop-off drive.
A: Awad Eskander stated that he
believed four (4) vehicles could stack up in the drop-off drive. Reference was made to a second covered
drop-off area for handicapped members or visitors.
Q: An inquiry was made as to whether
there might be more than 330 persons on the Church campus utilizing the Chapel
and, perhaps, another building.
A: Awad Eskander advised that during
the Holy Liturgy, everyone had to be inside the Chapel. No other activity would occur during that
time. The Sunday school activity would
occur after the Holy Liturgy. The
maximum capacity onsite at any time would be 330.
Mayor Pro Tem Phil
Nauert asked the following additional question of the Applicant:
Q: Reference was made to the towers on
the north and south of the Church campus.
An inquiry was made as to whether or not the towers were “bell towers”
and what sounds might be broadcast.
A: Awad Eskander stated that
traditionally the towers were “bell towers”; however, the Church had no
intention of installing any bells in the tower. The towers were added to the design, as they were decorative or
symbolic of their traditional architecture.
It was possible that the Church would install a “shell” bell that would
simulate a traditional bronze bell.
This bell would not be functional—it would be symbolic.
Mayor Mary Ann Goode
presented the following question to the Applicant:
Q: According to the traffic study
submitted by the Applicant, reference was made to the fact that during the week
there would be less than 20 people on the Church campus. An inquiry was made as to whether attendance
during the week would increase with the addition of a gymnasium and education
building.
A: Father Bishoy George, St. Mark Coptic
Orthodox Church, Bellaire, Texas, advised that the maximum number of people
on the Church campus during the week days would be 40.
Councilwoman Cynthia
Siegel presented the following questions to City staff:
Q: An inquiry was made as to the method
of determining the number of parking spaces required when an Applicant has more
than one building on its property.
A: City Attorney Alan P. Petrov advised
that the City’s ordinance pointed to the main sanctuary, so that building was
utilized to determine the number of parking spaces required.
Q: Reference was made to the traffic
engineer’s study that was based on 1995 data.
An inquiry was made as to whether the City required information to be
current.
A: City Attorney Alan P. Petrov advised
that the Code of Ordinances of the City of Bellaire, Texas, did not
contain a specific requirement in terms of how recent information submitted
with an application needed to be.
City Manager Satterwhite stated
that the Bellaire Police Department conducted informal traffic studies from
time to time around town. These studies
were not as scientific as a full-blown traffic study. Studies were conducted on Mulberry Lane at the request of some residents
and so far there had not been any appreciable changes with respect to traffic
patterns.
Q: Reference was made to calculating
lot coverage. Since the Applicant had
purchased several parcels of land, it was assumed that it had been replatted as
one piece of land. An inquiry was made
as to how that situation might affect the existing drainage pattern.
A: City Attorney Alan P. Petrov advised
that the Code of Ordinances of the City of Bellaire, Texas, required the
City to look at the site as a whole. He
noted that the Church had the additional requirement of providing a storm retention
pond with the property as a whole whereas if a parcel had remained residential,
that parcel would not be required to provide storm retention. The drainage was significantly improved
through this application.
Councilman Pat
McLaughlan presented the following questions to City staff:
Q: Reference was made to the fact that
the City’s Citizens Advisory Task Force on Drainage Issues was currently
reviewing storm water management on a given site. He inquired as to whether the landscape plan ensured that the
storm water falling on the property would be directed into the retention basins
by the appropriate contouring of the lot versus any potential spillover on
adjoining properties due to fill.
A: City Manager Satterwhite advised
that an engineered drainage plan would be required. This plan would direct the storm water to the retention systems.
Q: Reference was made to the thorough
consideration and evaluation done by the Commission. The Commission imposed many special conditions on the
Applicant. An inquiry was made as to
whether these additional, recommended conditions were allowed under state and
federal statutes with respect to religious institutions.
A: City Attorney Alan P. Petrov believed
that all recommended conditions were acceptable and noted that he understood
that the Church had agreed to those conditions. More onerous conditions than would be required elsewhere would be
unacceptable. The particular circumstances,
location, and aspects of the given property could be taken into account.
Councilman
McLaughlan concluded and stated that the Church had been very accepting of
a number of conditions without mandate.
He wished to ensure that none of the conditions were in violation of any
state or federal legislation.
City Attorney Petrov
agreed with Councilman McLaughlan and advised that the conditions were not
in violation of any state or federal legislation.
F. RECOGNITION OF CITIZENS AND/OR OTHER
INTERESTED PARTIES – Mayor Mary Ann Goode.
Mayor Goode announced that she
wished to enter into the record a number of letters received by the City
Council. Since some of the letters were
hand delivered over the weekend, she was not certain that City Hall had
received them.
The names of those people who
submitted letters, as well as emails, to City Council over the last few weeks
were read as follows:
Mrs. L. P. Nesbitt and Janis
Ellen Nesbitt Patton
(No address given);
Andrew and Blake Quinn
411
Mulberry Lane;
D.
Marrack
420
Mulberry Lane;
James
D. Woodruff
702
Mulberry Lane;
Victor
A. and Anstis B. Lundy
701
Mulberry Lane;
Stan
and Cindy Merrill
4401
Acacia Street;
Sherry
and Ron Noblett
608
Mulberry Lane;
Ronell
D. and Bernard Levin
(No
address);
Lisa
and Marco Marcelli
501
Mulberry Lane;
Vincent
T. and Ann H. Fromen
4402 Acacia
Street;
Bryan
and Betty Russell
113
McTighe Drive;
Sam
and Ellen Lott
4403
Acacia Street;
Nader
Shehad
5716
Innsbruck Street;
Sandy
Abdelsayed
4805
Bellaire Boulevard;
Mina
Tadros
5111
Aspen Street;
Samia
Khalil
(No
address);
Beshoy
Shatby
537
Cascade Drive; and
Phillip
and Mary Agnes Trainer
905
Mulberry Lane.
Sam Lott, 4403
Acacia Street, Bellaire, Texas, addressed City Council and stated that his
home was in close proximity to St. Mark Coptic Orthodox Church (“St.
Mark”). He was an advocate of churches,
and believed that St. Mark was a great benefit to our neighborhood and
City. Mr. Lott referenced the Bellaire
city seal and noted that most prominent on the seal was the spire of a church
that rose above the City and the homes of the City.
Mr. Lott presented a
brief history of the Coptic Orthodox Churches as follows: Alexandria was one of the greatest centers
of learning in the Roman Empire. A
great school was located there that was the center of religious, philosophical,
and scientific study. For example, in
70 B.C. there was a collection of Jewish Rabbis that were brought together
at the School of Alexandria to perform a translation of the Hebrew Scriptures
into the common language of the known world, which was Greek, so that the Jews
throughout the known world could read the scripture in their language.
In addition, the
missionary that took the gospel to the church in Egypt was none other than John
Mark (mentioned in the book of Acts and was later known as “St. Mark”) who
translated the gospel that we called the “Gospel According to Mark.” In about 16 A.D., roughly the same time that
the gospel was taken to Rome, the gospel was taken to Egypt and thus began the
Egyptian Church. Their heritage was as
old as that of the Roman Church.
In 325 A.D. when
Constantine, the first Christian Emperor, convened all of the leaders of the
Christian world to come together and resolve what was believed, it was the
Coptic Church delegation that was so persuasive in presenting the evidence of
scripture. The Egyptian Church was very
important to the religious community throughout the world, as well as to us.
About 2000 years later,
God brought the Coptic Church to Bellaire.
This church on Mulberry Lane was the first Coptic Church that was built
in North America, and Bellaire was graced with being the location of that first
Coptic Church.
In conclusion, Mr. Lott
advised that he was extremely proud to have St. Mark as part of his
neighborhood and as part of our City.
He noted that he had attended services at the Coptic Church. St. Mark would truly be burdened if the City
Council refused to let them build a sanctuary that would simply seat the people
that attended there. He concluded and
stated that St. Mark had demonstrated a true representation of what Christians
should be.
Cindy Merrill, 4401
Acacia Street, Bellaire, Texas, addressed City Council and noted that her
home was located on the corner of Acacia Street and Mulberry Lane approximately
four houses down from St. Mark Coptic Orthodox Church (“St. Mark”). She stated that one of the best qualities
that neighbors could share was cooperation.
When there was traffic congestion on Mulberry Lane due to on street
parking for St. Mark’s services, St. Mark and the City cooperated in resolving
the problem. A result of that
cooperation was a no parking zone on the west side of Mulberry Lane. To Ms. Merrill’s knowledge, there had been
no traffic congestion since that time.
When some neighbors
complained of noise during St. Mark’s annual fundraising event, St. Mark
listened. To Ms. Merrill’s knowledge,
the problem was resolved.
When there were
complaints regarding trash on the property, that, too, was attended to by St.
Mark.
Ms. Merrill advised
that she had initially joined her neighbors to voice concerns about certain
aspects of St. Mark’s building project.
At a recent meeting with St. Mark, it appeared as if the neighbors’
concerns had been listened to and each and every request of the Commission had
been addressed. Again, this showed
cooperation. Anyone who had moved into
the neighborhood during the last 30 years accepted the fact that they were
neighbors of St. Mark.
Everyone would benefit
from the development of the beautifully designed new structure that could only
improve the appearance of St. Mark’s property and, hence, the
neighborhood. Ms. Merrill hoped that
City Council would acknowledge how cooperative St. Mark had been and would vote
to approve the requested specific use amendment.
Lee Ann Dixon, 4601
Valerie Street, Bellaire, Texas, advised that she was the traffic engineer
that had performed the study on behalf of St. Mark. When available traffic data was reviewed (the most recent data of
which was from 1995), a traffic engineer would assess how much other
development had occurred in that area.
The particular stretch of Mulberry Lane where St. Mark was located was
very similar to the way it looked in 1995.
Given that reasoning, a new traffic study was not conducted. The existing data was grown approximately 1%
per year.
Churches presented a
unique situation with respect to traffic.
They did not have the same peak hours of operation as other businesses
with weekday hours of operation resulting in rush hour traffic from 7:00 a.m.
to 9:00 a.m. and again from 4:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. Typically, churches met on Sundays, and
sometimes Saturdays, when very few people were going to work.
On a personal side, Ms.
Dixon advised that she was a Bellaire resident and lived across the street from
Horn Elementary School. She was,
therefore, aware of congestion concerns that people who lived near churches and
schools had. Oftentimes in the mornings
and afternoons, there was a 15-minute congestion problem. The problem did go away after 15
minutes. Church situations could get
congested during the hour or so on Sunday when people were entering and exiting
the facility for services, however, it only occurred one day per week.
Dr. Magdy Tadros,
5111 Aspen Street, Bellaire, Texas, addressed City Council and noted that
there were many benefits to be gained from the project for St. Mark and the
neighborhood. He focused on one
benefit, flood prevention, which was an important issue for many of the
neighbors. In 1994-1995, Dr. Tadros
lived on Mulberry Lane and experienced flooding. During Tropical Storm Allison, many houses throughout Bellaire
and in the Medical Center flooded, as well as several houses on Mulberry
Lane. Since Tropical Storm Allison,
many organizations had taken measures to prevent the flooding from occurring
once more. The elevations of new homes
constructed within the last 12 months were several feet higher than those homes
built a few years ago.
Knowing the flooding
issue on Mulberry Lane, St. Mark hired an experienced, licensed civil
engineering firm to redesign a new storm retention system to be included in the
new church plan. The Bellaire Public
Works Department and the Commission reviewed the plan and provided comments and
recommendations. After St. Mark
included those recommendations in the plan, the City approved it.
St. Mark’s drainage
plan provided the following benefits:
1)
The capacity of the new storm retention pond was huge. The new system would drastically reduce, and
hopefully eliminate, flooding in the nearby properties by collecting and
holding rainwater during severe storms;
2) The engineering plan included the
replacement of an existing public storm line between Mulberry Lane and the
eastern border of the church property.
This 36” pipe would transport more than eight (8) acres of water runoff
from Mulberry Lane to the main storm line; and
3) In order to comply with the Commission’s
recommended 80’ setback, St. Mark had to split the storm retention pond into
two ponds. The total capacity of the
two ponds was the same as a single, large pond.
The members of St. Mark
respected every neighbor and valued their input and concern. Dr. Tadros concluded and advised that he was
convinced that St. Mark’s project offered many benefits. He advised further that City Council’s
approval of the project was in the best interests of the community and the
church and would be appreciated.
Ann Fromen, 4402
Acacia Street, Bellaire, Texas, advised that, in the interest of time, she
wished to thank two of her eloquent neighbors who had spoken previously, Cindy
Merrill and Sam Lott, as they had reflected her views as well. She concluded and noted that she hoped City
Council would approve St. Mark’s project.
Blake Quinn, 411
Mulberry Lane, Bellaire, Texas, addressed City Council and advised that her
home was located directly across the street from St. Mark. When she and her husband had considered the
purchase of their property, they were concerned about the effects St. Mark
had on the neighborhood. Due to the
size of St. Mark, she and her husband decided it would be acceptable to build
their home across the street.
Since that time, St.
Mark purchased a residential property to the north of their property. The property was never listed on the market,
which concerned and disturbed the neighbors after it was discovered that St. Mark
purchased it. It was thought that a
property zoned for residential meant that it could be used only for a home, but
the neighbors were wrong.
Ms. Quinn stated that
she was concerned about the plans for St. Mark for many reasons. After much research, she discovered just
what the impact could be for those on Mulberry Lane. She measured the local churches herself as data, such as size,
occupancy, and parking records, was not available through the City due to the
age of the churches. The first church
she measured was 4,000 square feet and seated 500-600 people. After making note of all of the churches and
their sizes, locations, street access, parking capability, traffic control, and
church services offered, she realized just how immense St. Mark’s proposal was.
The result of Ms.
Quinn’s research showed that St. Mark would be the largest church in Bellaire
by far, and it would be the only one solely located in the middle of a single
residential street. It would not have
multiple lanes, traffic lights, multiple street access, or turn lanes. She advised that she knew then that the
problems due to the church were just beginning. She was not looking just to the sanctuary, but to the entire
resulting facility totaling over 26,000 square feet.
Ms. Quinn advised that
there were only five (5) Coptic Churches in the State of Texas, which led to
the question of congregation growth.
The presence of St. Mark or any other church on Mulberry Lane was not in
contention. She could understand their
desire to preserve what they felt was sacred ground and respected their desire
to rebuild a more acceptable facility.
At some point it must be understood that the homeowners had their rights
as well.
The concern was size in
relation to location. As homeowners,
there were many concerns with respect to traffic and parking problems. An increase in those problems was not
acceptable.
Noise issues had also
been dealt with by homeowners. Many
outdoor activities were held on Friday evenings and other youth groups were
invited to attend St. Mark’s youth activities.
An expansion would increase the noise problem as well. Unfortunately, the needs of the church to
expand to such a degree was worrisome to those on Mulberry Lane as it was felt
that the church was far exceeding their capabilities to satisfy their current
needs. The homeowners should not have
to bear the brunt of St. Mark’s overdevelopment of their property.
Ms. Quinn continued and
stated that a church of 10,437 square feet plus was suspect for such a small
number of congregants. Currently, St.
Mark had designed for 44 parking spaces more than was required by the City’s
parking ordinance. Normally, members
from St. Mark parked in unmarked spaces, driveways, grass, and still overflowed
into the street. With over 7,000 square
feet for an education building, this would promise to be an everyday problem if
a daily school were to be opened. It
would appear that a church could locate anywhere and build anything regardless
of whether the welfare of the neighbors was hindered.
{Permitted speaking
time expired prior to the conclusion of the speaker’s address}
Andy Quinn, 411
Mulberry Lane, Bellaire, Texas, addressed City Council and advised that he
agreed with the previous speaker.
Virtually all of the residents on Mulberry Lane had been contacted and
while it might appear that Bellaire residents agreed with the project, no one
on Mulberry Lane had agreed with it.
With respect to the
size of the church, it would grow from 2,500 square feet to 10,000 square
feet. The standard church in Bellaire
allowed 8-12’ per congregant. Using
that ratio, St. Mark could hold 800 to 1,200 people. In this event, the parking proposal would be entirely inadequate.
The church did not
consist of a Bellaire congregation and, for the most part, were not Bellaire
residents or Bellaire taxpayers. Mr.
Quinn asked that strong consideration be given to the fact that the residents
on Mulberry Lane opposed the project.
With respect to
financing, the present church facility was modest and had not been well
maintained. The new facility would be
very costly to build and maintain.
There was a concern that if the church did not have adequate financing,
then the neighbors on Mulberry Lane would be stuck with an incomplete, unkempt
facility on their street.
Beshoy Shatby, 537
Cascade Drive, Bellaire, Texas, addressed City Council and spoke to the
parking issue. He stated that St.
Mark’s membership had been stable since a second Coptic Church was built in the
Houston area. It was the policy of the
Bishop of St. Mark and all the Coptic Orthodox Dioceses to build small churches
around the City to accommodate members.
This was also evident in other cities under the Southern Diocese, such
as Dallas, Nashville, Orlando, Tampa, etc.
The purpose of St.
Mark’s project was to provide adequate space for its current membership, not
for expansion. The current parking
provided spaces for 96 cars and was located at the rear of St. Mark away from
the street. The proposed project would
extend the parking to 175 spaces, which exceeded the City’s requirement. St. Mark would, therefore, provide double
the amount of parking spaces for the same number of members and would eliminate
parking on the street.
Some neighbors had
expressed concerns regarding the leased easement from the power company. For that reason, the Commission recommended
that the required number of parking spaces be on wholly owned land. St. Mark complied with this recommendation
to ease the concerns of the neighbors.
In the meantime, St. Mark would financially maintain this long-term
agreement, which everyone knew had a remote chance of revocation, for the good
of the community.
On several occasions,
the neighbors on Mulberry Lane had asked to utilize portions of St. Mark’s
facilities, and St. Mark was happy to allow that use. Mr. Shatby described examples of such uses in detail.
Dr. Carin Hagberg
and Dr. Steve Roberts, 515 South Third Street, Bellaire, Texas, addressed
City Council. Dr. Hagberg advised that
she was not a parishioner of St. Mark’s, but supported the project. She believed, after having listened to the
presentation, that the issues had been addressed.
Dr. Roberts encouraged
the City Council to approve the specific use amendment request in keeping with
the tolerance that the City had always shown religion and ethnicity. This was what had made the community of
Bellaire strong.
Frank Hill, Attorney
for St. Mark Coptic Orthodox Church, advised that he had been asked by St.
Mark to attend the Public Hearing in the event that there had been any legal
questions. After listening to Alan
Petrov’s earlier comments, Mr. Hill noted that Mr. Petrov was certainly
very well versed with respect to federal statutory restrictions and
constitutional limitations on what could be done by a government.
With respect to the ten
conditions required by the Commission, he had spoken with St. Mark officials,
and the officials wished to assure the City Council that whether or not those
conditions were “technically” too much or too little, there would be no complaints. St. Mark wanted to do those things as a good
neighbor.
Ron Noblett, 608
Mulberry Lane, Bellaire, Texas, addressed City Council and advised that he
had some issues with the traffic study, which concluded that the project would
have no adverse impact on the pattern on Mulberry Lane. Significant changes had occurred since the
conditioning of that report. For
example, 10+ new homes were completed and Spruce Street was added behind Teas
(and would have 14 new planned future homes).
Mulberry Lane was now a discovered cut-through due to the recent
Newcastle Drive construction. According
to St. Mark’s website, there were only four (4) days out of September that
there was no activity on the church campus.
According to the study,
an assumption was made that Mulberry Lane was 30’ wide. Curb to curb, Mulberry Lane was 26’
wide. The total planned square footage
according to the study was 18,560. The
actual plan was 26,692 square feet.
Other observations in the study cited 1.7 people per vehicle versus the
required 3 people per vehicle. The
traffic study was old and incorrect.
Today, St. Mark had a
square footage of 9,270. Their square
footage under the proposal would grow to a total of 26,692. There were 96 parking spaces today. An 82% growth would result in a requirement
of 175 parking spaces. If St. Mark lost
the unowned easement and could no longer park there, there would only be a 15%
growth in parking spaces.
Membership today was
250 according to St. Mark. A statement
made by Bishop Youssef indicated that it was his policy to limit the size of
all churches to about 400 members.
In conclusion, there
was an approximate tripling of the square footage of the building space plan,
but less than doubling of the parking spaces plan. The traffic analysis observed 1.7 people per vehicle. Using the 400 maximum membership and
dividing by 1.7 people, 235 actual parking spaces would be needed. Best case on street parking, 60 cars would
spillover onto the street. Worst case
on street parking (i.e., loss of easement access), 125 cars would spillover
onto the street.
With respect to
sanctuaries, St. Mark would have the largest sanctuary in Bellaire at 10,437
square feet. The closest church from a
square footage point was Bellaire Presbyterian (8,125 square feet with seating
for 624 members). Using the standard of
Bellaire Presbyterian, the capacity of St. Mark would be 992 members. That type of traffic would shut Mulberry
Lane down.
Mr. Noblett advised
that he had an issue with the City’s reliance on customs and statements made by
St. Mark rather than on square footage standards. In the future, the church might become a different type of church
with a different philosophy on how to fill the square footage.
Mary Ruth White,
4310 Bellaire Boulevard, Bellaire, Texas, addressed City Council and
advised that she also owned a property on the south side of Mulberry Lane
adjacent to St. Mark (i.e., 422 Mulberry Lane). Ms. White’s concern was the size of the sanctuary. She knew that walls could be moved and seating
increased. If the church remained at
its present size, the proposed parking would be adequate.
She inquired as to what
happened if the size was increased thereby rendering the parking capacity
inadequate. She hoped that the City
could enforce the petition whereby only 330 was set forth as the maximum
capacity.
{Tape ended at this
point}
Ms. White advised that
people had built their homes on Mulberry Lane because they wanted large
lots. She was concerned that residents
had nothing but their driveways to accommodate visiting guests and family
because the street was full.
She encouraged St. Mark
to rebuild their beautiful sanctuary, but was concerned with the capacity and
how it might affect the residents on Mulberry Lane.
Sherry Noblett, 608
Mulberry Lane, Bellaire, Texas, addressed City Council and emphasized how
it important it was for the City to commission a new traffic study. In the traffic study performed for
St. Mark in 2001, the following statement was made: “should development occur that is
significantly different from the assumptions that were made in the study,
further review and analysis should be performed.” Ms. Noblett advised that at least ten (10) new homes had been
built in that block on Mulberry Lane.
She advised that this was significant.
The following quote by
the Bishop was read from the study by Ms. Noblett: “The cost of living, including real estate
within close proximity of St. Mark’s Coptic Church, Bellaire, Texas, is
prohibitively expensive and beyond reach for average members of the
church. This is especially true for
those new to the United States. Many of
the first generation Cops in the Houston area are retired or new retirement. Many are choosing to move to the suburbs
citing the reasons of pollution, congestion, and high real estate taxes. The second generation members are growing up
and moving off to college, starting new careers, marrying, and moving away from
their home and church home.” Ms.
Noblett concluded from that statement that the congregation would be moving
away from the 26,692 square foot structure and noted that it was reminiscent of
the Church of the Nazarene. She also
inquired as to whether she was the only one who new that Bellaire’s First
Baptist Church was now for sale.
In continuation, Ms. Noblett
advised that the street width on Mulberry Lane was 26’, not 30’ as stated in
the study. Ms. Noblett expressed
concern that the study contained incorrect information. Two years ago, the application submitted by
St. Mark indicated that the church campus would contain a total of 18,560
square feet. The current application
referenced a total square footage of 26,692 square feet. She also referred to the fact that the previous
application submitted indicated a square footage for the Chapel of 6,500 for
330 seats. The application currently
indicated a square footage of 10,437 square feet for 330 seats. She inquired as to whether she was the only
one who had noticed the inaccuracies in numbers. Additionally, the new Fellowship Hall was off by another 400
square feet.
Ms. Noblett advised
that the neighbors had a history with St. Mark as to the maintenance of their
building. For example, 1) ceilings were
falling in; 2) windows were broken; and 3) there was asbestos in the walls. She requested that City Council consider
condemning the property at 502 Mulberry Lane and that no parking be allowed on
Mulberry Lane.
It was further advised
that the study contained the following statement: “during a Sunday morning visit in October of 2001, we realized
the following activities:
1)
Nine (9) vehicles were parked along the church side of
Mulberry Lane; and
2)
The parking lot in the rear of the church was full, including
two vehicles parked in unmarked spots, four vehicles parked parallel against
the back curb, for a total of 99 vehicles parked in the lot.”
Ms. Noblett stated that
the church used 108 spaces on that particular Sunday. If the average vehicle occupancy was 1.7 people, the numbers did
not add up. Numbers could be thrown
around. She inquired as to what the
City was going to do for the neighbors when church members were parked by fire
hydrants. Visibility was also a
significant problem for people trying to drive down Mulberry Lane around the
parked vehicles. She indicated that the
residents on Mulberry Lane had sent City Council pictures of vehicles trying to
leave the church campus. The residents
on Acacia Street had a choice of routes to take—they did not have to use
Mulberry Lane. Ms. Noblett did not have
a choice; she had to use Mulberry Lane.
She reiterated that
this was the only church in all of Bellaire that was located on a fully
residential street. She inquired as to
why that was and noted that the reason was the church did not fit. She also advised that St. Mark would have
the largest sanctuary of all churches in Bellaire, which did not make sense for
330 members. Dividing 330 members by
the proposed cost of the church improvements resulted in a debt of $33,000 per
family (based on 100 family members).
She asked if the church was prepared financially to do that.
Ms. Noblett concluded
and advised that it was incumbent upon the City to pay for a new traffic
study. She felt this was owed the
citizens of Mulberry Lane. If cost was
an issue, the citizens on Mulberry Lane were willing to assist with the
expense.
Lisa Marcelli, 501
Mulberry Lane, Bellaire, Texas, addressed City Council and stated that she
lived across the street from St. Mark.
She noted that the church had developed a beautiful design, however, she
was concerned about traffic and parking issues. She agreed with the Nobletts with respect to the traffic study
and its inadequacies. The street had
changed radically since the Marcellis had purchased their lot. At the time the traffic study was performed,
there were a number of empty lots, which was no longer the case.
The parking was
inadequate. St. Mark currently had 96
parking spaces on their property. She
understood that the church would increase the parking spaces on their property
to 110, and that a leased easement would be available for additional
parking. Ms. Marcelli advised that she
had spoken with the manager of the local Reliant office, and he advised that
the company was very particular with the granting of easement use, and it could
go away at any time. She did not feel
that it was appropriate to let this giant church be built without taking into
account the long-term effects if the easement went away.
According to the
church, they were trying to increase their membership by 80. A parking problem already existed on the
street, so the increase in membership was a concern.
Dr. Sally Awad, 106
Ferndale Street, Bellaire, Texas, addressed City Council and advised that
she had been a member of St. Mark for 22 years. She moved to Bellaire several years ago with her husband and two
young children merely because of the proximity of the church. As Bellaire residents, everyone had
witnessed the magnificent developments in the City. Everyone had seen old homes replaced with new, large
state-of-the-art homes; new parks; street repairs; jogging tracks; and many
other significant improvements in the City’s infrastructure. As a church member of St. Mark, the same
held true for Mulberry Lane and for the Church. The plan spanned all three acres of land owned by the Church, and
the congregation wished to upgrade and blend with the new, beautiful
surrounding homes on Mulberry Lane.
The Church, therefore,
had retained the services of a landscape architect to provide the appropriate
design for the project. The new
buildings were planned for construction in the center of the property allowing
a great deal of open space between the Church and the neighboring property to
the north.
St. Mark was making a
major investment to update the old look and add new, modern buildings with an
attractive landscape. This project was
a contribution to the local community and to the real estate value on Mulberry
Lane.
As a side note, some
people had claimed that properties located next to a church depreciated the
real estate value. If this was true,
what was the explanation as to why a lot on Mulberry Lane bought in 1975 for
$25,000 was now worth 15 times that amount.
Another side note was
the fact that the Bellaire Buzz’s September issue stated that the most
expensive home in Bellaire was $3,000,000.
It happened to be located near several churches.
In conclusion, St.
Mark’s project was a contribution to our local community and to the relative
real estate value on Mulberry Lane. By
replacing several old buildings with new beautiful buildings, this project
would enhance the real estate value relative to today’s current value. The landscaping plan was an integral part of
this project, and Dr. Awad kindly requested City Council’s approval of St.
Mark’s petition.
Marco Marcelli, 501
Mulberry Lane, Bellaire, Texas, addressed City Council and agreed with the
previous statements made by his wife, Lisa Marcelli, the Nobletts, and the
Quinns. He expressed concern that such
a large church would be built on a very small street. There would be an exponential increase in the number of
parishioners, which would result in an exponential increase in traffic
congestion.
Mr. Marcelli asked that
City Council act with extreme moderation.
He felt that the rights of the neighbors should also be taken into consideration. The consequences of allowing such a large
building with a resulting increase in congregation needed to be taken into
consideration.
Russ Pitman, 4908
Imperial Street, Bellaire, Texas, noted that Sam Lott’s previous address to
City Council was an inspiration. He
continued and advised that the Commission had placed very stiff recommendations
or a burden on St. Mark. Even though
the attorneys had stated that the conditions were acceptable, Mr. Pitman felt
that the conditions were probably more than the City could get away with. St. Mark had graciously agreed to all of the
conditions, had done everything that the Commission wanted them to do, and Mr.
Pitman commended them for doing so.
He advised further that
parking on the street was legal. If one
traveled down the street he lived on at night, one would see that many cars
spent the night on the street.
Bellaire Presbyterian
Church, the second largest according to the Nobletts’ diagram, had virtually no
onsite parking until recent years. Their
onsite parking was still woefully inadequate and on Sundays the members spilled
over onto the residential area. St.
Mark, on the other hand, had provided more onsite parking than the other
churches in Bellaire in Mr. Pitman’s opinion.
Mr. Pitman was puzzled
by many of the comments made this evening as the church had been at its current
location since 1969. The new homes
built recently knew there had always been a church on that street when those
homes were built and purchased. He was
also really puzzled by two speakers who had built a magnificent home on the
north side of the church, but were at the City fighting against the
church. Why would someone build an
incredibly beautiful home next to something that would give you fits based on
their comments this evening?
The law stated that
churches could be located anywhere. The
architects had designed a beautiful building that was a welcome addition to the
neighborhood, and he believed the City Council should approve the specific use
amendment. Mr. Pitman felt that the
leaders of the church, as well as their membership, had tried real hard to be
good neighbors. They had done an
excellent job with the input from the neighbors, the input from the Commission,
and from others. Mr. Pitman
concluded and urged City Council to give this petition their blessing.
Lynn McBee, 5314
Evergreen Street, Bellaire, Texas, addressed City Council and agreed with
the comments made by Russ Pitman. She
commended the Commission and referred to their excellent, articulate set of
recommendations for changes on the site plan presented to them.
Ms. McBee also
commended City staff for their extreme attention to regulations and current
flood concerns. The City staff had
reviewed the petition with a large microscope, and the requirement on the
flooding was probably attributable to Claunch & Miller, Inc.’s advance
knowledge of what was coming at Bellaire on the floodplain map to be released
in January (possibly). St. Mark would
probably be the most flood-protected institution in the City.
Ms. McBee commended the
City Council for their patience and noted that the Public Hearing process was a
very limited opportunity for the community to express their opinions.
With respect to size of
homes and churches, there were no regulations to control maximum sizes. She had discussed that issue with the
Commission and suggested that it be explored.
However, there was an ongoing cultural phenomenon—the more the better. Many homes had been built that covered the
lot to the absolute maximum, and many of those homeowners owned 3-5 cars. Oftentimes, the occupants of the homes were
parked in the street. The only way to
control size was to consider setting maximums.
Ms. McBee advised that
in 1998 and in 2000 another church approached City Council and wished to build
a very small church. City Council did
not approve the specific use amendment.
The two “no” votes were cast by Mayor Pro Tem Phil Nauert and
Councilwoman Cynthia Siegel. Ms. McBee
was delighted to see City Attorney Petrov again repeating what regulated City
Council’s decision with respect to this issue.
She hoped that the two who cast dissenting votes two years ago
understood that this could not be done anymore.
Ms. McBee concluded and
stated her support for the specific use amendment. She had not seen a more compliant applicant in many years. With graciousness, the church not only said
they would address the Commission’s conditions, but actually made those changes
before it ever came to City Council.
The church did not have to do that—they could have waited to see if City
Council would agree and impose those same conditions. This was “cooperation,” “neighborliness,” and “commitment.”
Dr. David Marrack,
420 Mulberry Lane, Bellaire, Texas, addressed City Council and advised that
he objected strongly to the petition by St. Mark. Dr. Marrack wished to address two of the many issues before City
Council.
1) The City Marshal stated that the
occupancy limit was seven (7) square feet per person or seat. With 10,000 square feet, more than 1,000
people could be accommodated. If the
City Council accepted the reduced figures given to them this evening, nearly
700 people could still be accommodated.
In order to
accommodate an increased membership, parking had to be available. Nothing resembling that had been presented
to City Council this evening. Dr.
Marrack urged City Council to look with care at the parking problem. The capacity of the sanctuary far exceeded
that of the parking capacity whether one considered 1.7 or 3 persons per car. The City Council had not addressed additional
parking that would be required for the other buildings—Administration, School,
etc.
2) The preface to zoning for the City of
Bellaire included consideration of the welfare, health, and safety of the
citizens. This was included as a part
of the preamble to the City’s Comprehensive Plan. Within the last 30 years, multiple
situations had occurred wherein Councils had rejected the requests of religious
institutions to build on residential property.
The courts had upheld those rejections.
The application
submitted by St. Mark required a rezoning of Lot 502 on Mulberry Lane
(currently an R-3 Residential Zone) to some special use permit. Previously, the City Council was informed by
an attorney that they could not lawfully change zoning unless public health,
welfare, or public safety were involved.
Dr. Marrack submitted that none of those had been presented as
applicable to rezoning Lot 502.
{Tape
ended at this point}
Dr. Marrack continued
and referred to several court cases wherein religious institutions were not
allowed to build in residential areas.
Recently a city outside of San Antonio rejected the rezoning of property
from residential to special use to enable an adjacent church to expand its
buildings. The rejection was taken to
the U.S. Supreme Court and the authority of the council was upheld in
1998. Dr. Marrack advised that he was
certain that the City Council would want to follow that Texas precedent. City Council should rule against the change
of the zoning of Lot 502 on Mulberry Lane.
The court cases
referred to by Dr. Marrack were distributed to City Council.
Sandy Abdelsayed,
4805 Bellaire Boulevard, Bellaire, Texas, addressed City Council and stated
that three questions had come to mind with respect to this issue as follows:
·
Why the City of Bellaire?
·
Why Mulberry Lane?
·
Why this project?
With respect to
Bellaire, St. Mark had been in the City of Bellaire for over 25 years. Bellaire was located in the center of the
Houston Metropolitan Area. Many of the
members of St. Mark were professionals who worked and lived around St. Mark
Church. The average driving time for
members to get to church was 20 minutes.
Many questions had been
asked regarding this project this evening.
One was “why should a church whose members do not reside in Bellaire
build their church?” Ms. Abdelsayed
advised that the church did have members that resided in Bellaire. The church also had members living in West
University Place, the Medical Center, the Galleria Area, Sugar Land, Clear
Lake, The Woodlands, etc., where Coptic Churches did not yet exist. Ms. Abdelsayed answered the question with a
question—how many people living in Bellaire actually attended a church in
Bellaire? She was happy to say she
did. Could many people say the same
thing?
St. Mark had history
and establishment in the City of Bellaire.
It was where the first Coptic Orthodox Church was built in the United
States, and in 1977, their Pope came and consecrated their church.
With respect to Mulberry
Lane, Ms. Abdelsayed advised that she had attended St. Mark Coptic Orthodox
Church since she was four (4) years old, along with many of her lifetime
friends. She grew up at St. Mark
Church on Mulberry Lane. This was where
she attended Sunday school at a young age, and she called the church her
home. She noted that she was currently
a Sunday school teacher and board member at St. Mark. Throughout her time at the church, there had been many
engagements, weddings, baptismals, and, sadly, funerals. There were lots of memories in the
church. Although many of the members
traveled for their jobs, they always came back to church on Mulberry Lane. Mulberry Lane was the members’ home too.
In the past, Mulberry
Lane had not just one church, but two churches. St. Mark’s current Sunday school chapel used to be a Baptist
Church. St. Mark purchased that land
more than 18 years ago in order to plan for their future dream of building a
traditional Coptic Church blending within the neighborhood.
Some adjacent neighbors
were new to Mulberry Lane and lived in new, rebuilt homes. They were living in their dream homes just
as the church would like to do.
With respect to the
reason for this project, Ms. Abdelsayed referred to the Holy Book of
Ecclesiastics and quoted “to everything there is a season, a time for every
purpose under heaven.” The St. Mark
congregation had been planning for this project for years and was financially
sound to proceed. The recommendations
of the Commission, the City, and some of the neighbors’ requests had been
abided by. Thus, it was time for St.
Mark to build their traditional church—their dream home, It was time for their house to have a
baptismal area; it was time for their house to have a foyer; it was time for
their house to have a crying room; it was time for their house to have a
library and a bookstore; it was time for their house to have new and larger
Sunday School rooms; it was time for their house to have their traditional
altar; and, more importantly, it was time for their house to have more parking
spaces.
Unfortunately, there
were some who said it was time for the church to leave Mulberry Lane. Her response was they were not leaving their
history, their memories, or their home.
Instead, it was time to bring the dream of the congregation of St. Mark
into reality. The members believed that
the Lord gave them the land on Mulberry Lane to build the church, and this was
what they planned to do.
Ms. Abdelsayed urged
the City Council to approve St. Mark’s plan so that they might practice their
Christian faith at the same location that the members called “home.”
Bryan Muecke, 913
Mulberry Lane, Bellaire, Texas, addressed City Council and noted that he
was against the proposal to build a larger church on Mulberry Lane. One of the comments expressed this evening
was that there was only three hours of traffic on Mulberry Lane. He just reviewed the church calendar, and
noted that the church was open for business for 18 ½ hours on Sunday—those
hours did not include the 30-45 minutes prior to and after the church closed
and members where accessing and exiting the facility. Between midnight Friday and midnight on Sunday, the church was
occupied 40% of the time during daylight hours.
On Saturday and Sunday
there was often a great deal of traffic congestion on Mulberry Lane. A recent traffic plan or study had not been
conducted to confirm this, and he encouraged City Council to consider that
issue.
Mr. Muecke noted that
the size of the buildings would total approximately 25,000 square feet. He expressed concern that a multi-million
dollar investment was being made with the indication that the congregation
would grow very little. He also
expressed concern with a statement that was made wherein if the congregation
became too large, another church would be built nearby. He found this difficult to believe
considering the investment in the property on Mulberry Lane.
Mr. Muecke advised that
an imperfect plan was not good enough for him.
There were lots of holes in this plan.
The issue here was the existence of a giant building on a 24’ wide
street period. With respect to parking,
the HL&P easement was revocable within 30 days. That easement was currently under study for a possible toll
way. If that came to fruition, the
vehicles utilizing the easement for parking would come right back into the
street.
Mr. Muecke noted that
sidewalks did not exist on both sides of Mulberry Lane; therefore, people used
the street to walk, skateboard, etc.
The point was there were traffic problems, a structure too large for 300
congregants, and parking problems. He
believed that this situation did affect the health and welfare of the residents
on Mulberry Lane.
G.
CLOSE OF PUBLIC HEARING.
Mayor Goode advised
that the Public Hearing was closed at 9:26 p.m. on Monday, September 22,
2003. She noted that public comment
concerning the application and request by St. Mark Coptic Orthodox Church for a
specific use amendment to construct improvements to their church campus would
not be allowed following the Public Hearing.
Written comments could be submitted to City Council prior to final
deliberation of the issue. It was
anticipated that final deliberation would occur on Monday, October 6, 2003, and
written comments should be submitted no later than noon on Thursday, October 2,
2003.
H.
ADJOURNMENT.
Motion: A motion was made by
Councilwoman Alexia Sidney and seconded by Mayor Pro Tem Phil
Nauert to adjourn the Special Session (Public Hearing) held before the City
Council of the City of Bellaire, Texas, at 9:27 p.m. on Monday, September
22, 2003.
Vote: Motion carried unanimously on
a 7-0 vote.
Respectfully
submitted,
____________________________
Tracy
L. Dutton, City Clerk
City
of Bellaire, Texas
Approved:
_______________________________
Mary Ann Goode, Mayor
City of Bellaire,
Texas