Parking Cited in Denial of Church Permit

Scores of parishioners from the St. Verena Coptic Orthodox Christian Church left Anaheim’s City Council chambers disappointed Tuesday night after the council denied them a permit to build a new church.

In the 3-2 vote, council members said they were worried that the proposed church and assembly hall at Vermont Avenue and State College Boulevard did not include enough parking.

“My concern is: What’s going to happen as the church grows?” said Councilwoman Shirley McCracken, who noted problems at several other local churches that have outgrown their parking facilities.

Coptic church members, who currently share facilities with the First Southern Baptist Church on East Broadway, said they would not have created a parking nuisance. They said they had intended to limit congregation to 150 to 200 families.

Church members also said they would not use the church and assembly hall at the same time. The city staff had suggested 270 parking spaces, but with the church and assembly hall being used at different times, that number was brought down to 160.

The church included 100 spaces in its design. But some neighbors and users of Boysen Park expressed concern through letters and at public hearings that too few spaces would exacerbate an already difficult situation.

But Father Joseph Boules said a June study of Boysen Park found few cars on days and times of church services.

The city’s traffic engineer had approved a church-commissioned traffic study showing that 100 spaces would be adequate. And other area churches had offered to share their parking facilities.

McCracken said she still was concerned that the church had too few spaces. “They can say they’re going to limit [the number of families], but what about the teenagers, or senior citizens? That’s another car,” she said.

Other council members said the church was trying to put too much on a 1 1/2-acre site. The construction would require too many city code waivers, they said.

Ironically, the city’s staff had suggested that the church request a zoning change so the parking lot would better conform with the city’s general plan, Boules said. Had the church not sought a zoning change, it would not have needed the other waivers.

Councilman Tom Tait argued that the church, with origins in a form of Christianity practiced in Ethiopia, would prove a good addition to Anaheim’s multicultural community. “They’ve gone beyond the normal requests to solve the council’s concerns,” he said.

After the vote, Tait and Councilwoman Lucille Kring, who both voted to grant the permit, mingled with parishioners, offering their apologies.

“I can’t help but feel a little frustrated after all the hard work,” Boules said. He said he didn’t understand or agree with the council’s rationale.

Boules said his congregation will look for another site to build their church, possibly in Fullerton or Placentia. “If God is reserving another place for us, I’m sure it’s 100% better,” he said.

Judy Silber can be reached at (714) 966-5988.