After 3½ years the Board of Supervisors has
Approved the Sufism Reoriented Project
Dear Saranap neighbors,
I want to thank all of you who came and spoke at the Board of Supervisors hearings and for all of you others who came in support. Thanks for all your stamina.
The Supervisors have decided to approve the Sufism Reoriented Project with a few changes that while minimal, will tighten the parking alternatives.
Thanks again for your support,
Wayne Fettig, President
Saranap Homeowners Organization
A Thank You to all volunteers
for your efforts
Dear Saranap neighbors,
And a very big thank you to Wayne Fettig whose personal dedication and resolve was inspirational. Efforts need leaders and Wayne you are that guy. A guy who gave more than he asked of anyone else and helped inspire others to be interested in the cause and give what they could with their own resources of time and money. Thank you Wayne!
While this was not a just outcome in terms of the merits of the project and the devious actions of the sufis, resist giving in to negativity. You did everything that could be done and you did it well. The vote at 4-0 suggests that this isn't a case of "if only..." something else was done, or done differently. It seems to suggest that in the end it was likely all about political calculus and the county's weakness in terms of not wanting to become embroiled in litigation. Whatever it was, it's not your fault.
Like the line in the Kipling poem "If": "If you can meet with triumph and disaster, and treat those two imposters just the same..."; everyone should keep their heads up because it was a first class effort you gave. One to be proud of.
And, be thankful that it was not you who was complicit in the despicable effort to take over the neighborhood board. Be thankful it is not you who claims to understand and subscribe to a "central core of divine love" while lying about their neighbors motives and treating them as though they don't matter. That's also not your fault, or thankfully who you are. Be glad.
Consider praying for the health of Supervisor Uilkema and sending her messages of encouragement. She has consistantly demonstrated concern and interest in the issues of the Saranap area over the years. May she recover and enjoy her retirement. The Supervisor has never been one to duck a problem and for her to not be there today is not a good sign.
THANK YOU ALL FOR A JOB WELL DONE.
Mark Linden
Saranap Homeowners Organization
IT'S STILL ABOUT LAND USE,
NOT RELIGION
Imagine...
...a 66,000 square foot building across the street from your home or next to your back fence. If this could happen to your neighbors on Boulevard Way and Warren Road, it could happen to you.
Imagine...
...thousands of dump trucks rumbling through Saranap... noise... dust... traffic... hauling tons of dirt from a huge excavation the size of a football field that varies from 20 feet deep on the east side to 30 feet deep on the west side... hauling tons of concrete to fill the bottom and sides of this huge excavation and filling the foundations and floors for the rest of this massive facility. Heavy equipment, bulldozers, and all the equipment associated with large commercial construction being brought to and from this construction site...
...for years!!!
Read on...
Why We Are Concerned About the Scope of the Proposed Sufism Reoriented Facility
The community of Saranap is one that most local residents revere as a modest, semi-rural neighborhood. There aren’t many concrete sidewalks or curbs here, very few stoplights, and in general, not much of the trappings associated with urban life or for that matter, highly developed suburban tracts. Most residents like it that way.
We feel that the proposed Sufism Reoriented (SR) facility contains more features found in high density bustling cities where housing and commercial buildings are crammed side by side with very little space in between, if at all.
If we all wanted to live in a bustling city, we would live in a city. We are in Saranap for its eclectic charm, its gardens and abundant mature trees and its relatively quiet streets.
This is not just a neighborhood church. It is a mega-church complex proposed by a small group who happen to have the means to purchase the largest amount of space per member of any church in Contra Costa County. And it has the smallest amount of parking for any church of this size.
This building site currently contains a cluster of single-family homes. This is what the next-door neighbors moved into and expected to live next to for their time in Saranap. It is not unreasonable to assume that if you live in a residential neighborhood, you would expect it to remain residential. Now these neighbors would be subjected to the disruptive construction and eventual reality of a 66,000 sq. ft. building literally across their back fence.
We are not opposed to Sufism Reoriented building a new facility on this site, but they need to listen to the concerns of their neighbors and reduce the size and bulk of the project, provide adequate parking, retain trees, and reconsider the design so it blends in with the Saranap community. We are asking them to continue to be the good neighbors that they have been for many years.
Whatever happened to compromise? It’s clear that from the beginning that SR was contemplating other alternatives for their facility; why else would they have purchased so many properties near their current location? Why the former LaRossa’s Market; why the office building at 1285 Boulevard Way and the vacant lot next to it? These purchases were not accidental. These are already commercially zoned properties that would have been perfect for a campus configuration for their facility. They now refuse to consider this, or any other alternative. Is this reasonable when we consider the impact of the proposed mega-church shoehorned onto a lot that is too small for it?
A make-believe story, adapted by Brian Kilian from the "Wizard of Oz"
"We're not in Kansas anymore…." With these magical words, Dorothy begins her journey down the yellow-brick road in search of the almighty, all-knowing Wizard, the Wizard of Oz!
Well, it seems that we, too, have a Wizard here in Saranap. Or, more correctly, a group of Wizards, all with the belief that we must not question, challenge or even voice a public opinion regarding their new proposed "Emerald City", the Sufism Reoriented Sanctuary project.
Hiding behind their cloak of "community good-deeds" and well wishes for everyone, the Wizards are pulling the levers of deceit again, criticizing anyone who dares to question the validity of their development. Time and time again, after raising questions about the size of the building, the lack of parking, increased traffic throughout the neighborhood, clear-cutting all the trees, we are being told we are "anti-Sufism" and not tolerant of their religion. The Saranap Wizards would have us, and the County, believe that simply because Sufism Reoriented is performing faith-based work, and reaching out to the community via toy drives and other worthwhile events, that their proposed design is untouchable, and deserves to be compared to "the most beautiful building in the history of mankind".
Response after response from the development team of the Wizards tell us Saranap Munchkins that we'd better accept the proposed design and development, because if we don't, we will be branded as anti-Sufism. We are being characterized as hostile witches, creating fear and even hatred of Sufism Reoriented.
Not once have the Wizards admitted that there is a process that encourages public participation, a process that is set up specifically to question, analyze and propose alternative solutions. The Wizards are not willing to make any compromises to the Saranap Munchkins, who just might have different opinions or viewpoints on the acceptability of the proposed design. Regardless of the flying monkeys threatening to close schools, sell homes and desert the kingdom, we do have the courage, the heart and wisdom to question the appropriateness of this development.
I look forward to pulling back the cloak of deceit and misinterpretation, where we can all see for ourselves that there is nothing magical about this project. It simply is a proposed development that is too big and overwhelming for Saranap. A 66,000 sq. ft. building simply will generate far more use than the Wizard's 350 congregation. The required parking for this size of a building simply won't fit on the site. The minimal landscaping doesn't come close to mitigating the loss of all the existing trees, and certainly won't provide adequate screening for the 34 ft. tall bright white domed structure. The months and months of heavy equipment off-hauling all the spoils from the grading will destroy the neighborhood's roads; create noise, dust, aggravations and safety problems.
We all want a better place, "somewhere over the rainbow" where we all can be happy with the final design. Let's have that discussion, out in the open, not behind the rhetoric of the Wizards, claiming to be all-knowing, and telling us what is good for Saranap.
Latest News
THE APPEALS HAVE BEEN HEARD BY
THE BOARD OF SUPERVISORS;
THE FOLLOWUP MEETING
WILL BE HELD ON FEBRUARY 29
AT THE HOFMANN THEATER AT THE
REGIONAL CENTER FOR THE ARTS
IN WALNUT CREEK
The Contra Costa County Planning Commission approved the proposed Sufism Reoriented development. The Saranap Homeowners Organization submitted an Appeal to the Contra Costa County Board of Supervisors. The Appeal hearing was held on Tuesday, February 21. A follow-up meeting will be held on Wednesday, February 29 in the Hofmann Theater at the Regional Center for the Arts at the corner of Locust Street and Civic Drive in Walnut Creek. No public comments will be accepted at this meeting of the Board of Supervisors.
Online Articles About the
Sufism Reoriented Project
Important Updates!
These links will take you to the most recent articles about the Sufism Reoriented project in the Contra Costa Times; the Walnut Creek Patch, an online newspaper for the Walnut Creek area; and Halfway to Concord, an independent online blog covering California Politics and Contra Costa and East Bay News. They contain important information that we recommend that you read.
- Contra Costa Times editorial: Residents have legitimate gripe with building plan
Religious freedom does not give a faith community the right to run roughshod over reasonable planning guidelines and does not make those who question such a move bigots... (by Editorial Staff, Contra Costa Times, page A6, Feb. 23, 2012) - Barnidge: It's either the best or worst thing ever to happen to Saranap
In the end, this decision will hinge on the project’s compliance with land use stipulations...
(by Tom Barnidge, Contra Costa Times, page B1, Feb. 23, 2012) - Saranap Residents Divided By Sanctuary Plan
110 people speak at public hearing; county supervisors schedule Feb. 29 session to continue deliberations on Sufism Reoriented project... (by Lance Howland, Walnut Creek Patch,
Feb. 21, 2012) - County's Hearing On Sufi Sanctuary Is All Day
Crowd packs Lesher Center theater to hear appeal of plans for 66,000-square-foot facility off Boulevard Way... (by Lance Howland, Walnut Creek Patch, Feb. 21, 2012) - Sufism Reoriented Sanctuary Plan Misrepresents Parking To County Planners
The Planning Commission approval of the project last fall was based on false statements made by church officials... [and] represented to the county that it had arranged to lease additional off-site parking at the nearby Meher School located on property owned by the Lafayette School District,,, [which is] “not authorizing the Meher School to enter into a third-party agreement with Sufism Reoriented, or any other group, regarding the use of fields, facilities or parking lot”... (by Wendy Lack, Halfway to Concord, Feb. 18, 2012) - The Big Fix: County Staff favoritism toward Sufism Reoriented stacks deck against fair hearing of citizen appeals
An article about the time restriction imposed on appellants that may be unprecedented; the Board's standard practice is to allow appellants 10 minutes of presentation time, but this has been cut back to 7 minutes, with reduced time for rebuttals and for members of the public to speak... (by Wendy Lack, Halfway to Concord, Feb. 13, 2012)- Fairness should have been about hearing what appellants had to say
(A Response posted on the Halfway to Concord blog by Patricia, Feb. 15, 2012)
- Fairness should have been about hearing what appellants had to say
- Appeal of Sufi sanctuary plans in Walnut Creek should be based on facts and equal treatment
An article about competing interests: private property rights of church organizations and those of neighboring property owners; and how the threat of bad press and litigation can intimidate authorities into sacrificing one interest for another... (by Wendy Lack, Halfway to Concord, Jan. 11, 2012) - Sufism Reoriented sanctuary project in Walnut Creek poses litigation threats
An article detailing the history of the Sufism Reoriented sanctuary project... (by Wendy Lack, Halfway to Concord, Feb. 10, 2012)