06 ATTACHMENT 5 - Laserfiche WebLink

How do the Masons create a noise nuisance? Some lodges like to supplement their income by renting their building to the public for parties, e.g., wedding receptions, children's birthday parties, etc. This is why most lodges are located in commercial. not residential neighborhoods. Those few lodges located in residential areas either do not rent the building, or rent the building but not the outside. Furthermore, the rare lodges located in residential areas need to be regulated since they are not a normal neighbor in that normal residents do not hold parties with the frequency motivated by a profit - driven commercial enterprise, nor with the quantity of people—the capacity of the lodge is 600. Because of this, the 1977 City Commissioners, in recognizing that they were permitting the extremely rare act of allowing a Masonic Lodge in a residential area, put specific regulations (called conditions which are stipulated in a CUP -- Conditional Use Permit) on the Pleasanton Masons to ensure that use of the facility did not create a noise nuisance to the neighbors. Specifically, the conditions stated that: (1) the building was designed without any doors facing the neighbors (except a solid emergency door), (2) all noise had to be contained within the building, (3) activities had to be focused on the opposite side of the building away from the neighbors, and (4) the backyard area had to be used as a "buffer" to shield the neighbors against noise nuisances. This created a win -win for everyone—the Masons could rent the inside of their building for events to the public, yet not create a noise nuisance to the neighbors. (Please note, in 1977, when St. Clair's church sold part of their property to the Masons, two problems were created: (1) a small property parcel only meant for one building would now have two buildings, and (2) the Masonic building would be shoe-horned onto the property around the existing church. Therefore, the new Masonic building would be located closer to the neighbors than preferred—as stated by the 1977 Planning Commission report.) See Attachment #1 for a summary of the conditions /regulations the 1977 City Commissioners created to eliminate the noise nuisance. 2. Violation of codes The Millers coexisted peacefully with the Masons until, between 2004 to 2006, the City allowed the Masons to remodel and: #1: Break through the back wall of the banquet room, and install glass French doors to access the backyard area. This turned the backyard from a non - usable weed area, which acted as a buffer zone to shield the residences from noise as required in the 1977 CUP, into an outdoor entertaining area, by adding landscaping, a patio, and portable tents /tables for both public parties and Masonic events. Page 3 of 18