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The prospect of Pathway Community Church purchasing the former North Hills Bowling Alley on Colegate Drive for renovation and use as a church received no opposition during a public hearing Tuesday night at the Marietta Armory.
In fact, the proposition received several positive comments from Marietta City Council members, in addition to comments from some of the 15 church members who attended the hearing to lend their support.
As a result, Resolution 102 to grant the church "reasonable accommodation" in the commercial zoning district will receive its third reading Aug. 3 and be on its way to likely adoption.
The resolution had been tabled for a period of time so that council's designation of "reasonable accommodation" could be confirmed as a legitimate application that followed the correct local process.
Planning, Zoning, Annexation and Housing Committee Chair Geoff Schenkel told the group at the Tuesday hearing that there were several key points to Resolution 102. First, the zoning will not be changed from commercial. The "reasonable accommodation" granted the non-conforming property in the commercial zone will be attached to the deed itself, not to the city's zoning laws.
This should benefit the long run welfare of the church as well as the city, Schenkel pointed out. If the church should grow too big for the bowling alley site, it will be much easier to sell its land and building as a commercial property in a commercial zone. From the city's view, having the zoning remain commercial should help prevent the building from becoming an abandoned structure that would be hard to reuse, in case the church moves out.
Schenkel said the purpose of the public hearing was not something required, but rather something the city wanted to do to assure it was completely transparent in what it was doing.
By attaching the reasonable accommodation to a specific deed, the city is "stepping out of the way so that a higher authority can be acknowledged."
He was referring to the Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act of 2000. Part of the act helps religious institutions avoid state regulations of their property through zoning restrictions.
"You have full committee support," Schenkel said, addressing the assembled public and referring to council's Planning, Zoning, Annexation and Housing Committee. Council members Bill Gossett and Harley Noland are committee members along with Schenkel. Noland said he thinks the resolution is "a great solution" and Gossett agreed.
In general council comments, Councilman William Farnsworth said "I trust the process and I value people's wants and needs." The bowling alley is in Councilman Mike Scales' ward and he, too, thought the church moving in was going to be "great" because of its commitment to clean up and renovate the property. "It's really going to clean up that area on Colegate."
Pastor Ryan Miller was one of the church members who addressed council, and he gave them the assurance that "we intend to be great neighbors."