06 ATTACHMENT 5 - Laserfiche WebLink

Page 2 of 3 Also, having doors means they can be opened. Even if music generated from within meets the noise code when the doors are dosed, it will exceed the code when they are opened. Also, having the doors facilitates having activity in the north and west areas. Even without music, we have measured well over 70 dB from the normal events of twenty to thirty people that the Masons sponsor. The problem is that the events at the lodge exceed the normal use and frequency of a typical neighbor. Although the log that we gave you represents the use of the building in 2008, we did not document the use in 2007. In that year, there were more parties, probably because the economy was better, and the frequency was extreme. In one weekend, there was a party Friday night, a second party all day Saturday in the backyard area, and a third party Saturday night. A normal neighbor would not have this type of activity, and since the Mason's property is much larger than a typical Valley Trails home, the volume of people greatly exceeds a typical backyard party. Activities Allowed in. North and_ West Areas Allowing activity in the back area, even without music, can easily exceed the noise codes. When twenty to thirty people are in the backyard area, the noise from masses of people talking and kids playing, measured 25 feet from the structure and/or at our property line, routinely exceeds the noise codes. Therefore even if the doors are taken out, the activities on the north side must stop. The use permit states in condition #1, "activities focused on the south" and in condition #20, "applicant provide an effective buffer." The Staff Report and Public Hearing notes explain the meaning of the first condition, stating that activities on the north and west should be prohibited. Our prior letter stated, "If there is any ambiguity on the face of the Lodge's Conditional Use Permit, the Staff Report and Public Hearing notes should be used to interpret the meaning of the Permit and what the City Staff and Council intended at the time that the Permit was issued. While some City employees have contended that these ancillary materials are not "binding" on the City, they certainly explain what was intended when the Permit was issued in 1977. They also show how the site and structure were designed to focus activities toward the south side of the property and buffer noise from such activities from getting to and annoying the residents." Consequently, any fair reading of these documents would indicate that the Masons should not be conducting activities on the north and west sides of their building. Also the property across from the Masons on the SW corner of South Valley Trails and Hopyard is built on the furthest corner away from the residents. There are either hundreds of yards between the structure and any neighbor, or public tennis courts. Both the space and tennis courts shield the neighbors —and that facility is only a church—not a lodge with known noise nuisance problems when renting for weddings, etc. We feel that this sets a precedent for planning in Pleasanton. We also stated to you that St. Claire's church, and our neighbors Ron and Pam Lambert are the most effected due to location. Most other neighbors are either shielded by distance, buildings, etc. Finally, we believe that the Masons are responsible for knowing their use permit and for implementing changes that violated it. With the changes made to the building and grounds by the Masonic Lodge several years ago, well after the building was constructed, the Masonic Lodge is now in violation of the conditional use permit and the intentions of the Planning Commission in granting the permit. Furthermore, the City's residential zoning ordinance has the purpose to "protect residential properties from noise, illumination, unsightliness, odors, dust, dirt, smoke, vibration, heat, glare and other objectionable influences." Pleasanton Municipal Code § 18.36.010(H). Therefore, the Masons are also in violation of the zoning ordinances because they have plainly changed the lodge's uses from those consistent with a residential neighborhood to ones more in line with a night club in a commercial area. 3/16/2009