Bakersfield planning commission approves church play area with conditions after neighborhood concerns

The Bakersfield Planning Commission voted March 19 to move forward with a conditional use permit (CUP 25-0026) and a zone modification (25-0008) that will allow Saint Demiana Coptic Orthodox Church to install two pickleball courts and a soccer field on church property.

Assistant Planner Andrea Murillo told commissioners staff found the request consistent with the Bakersfield Municipal Code and the Metropolitan Bakersfield General Plan, and recommended approval. The project would reduce a required 10-foot setback to 5 feet for the recreational area, increase allowed fence height at a White Lane-facing portion to approximately 16–18 feet (netting above a 4-foot perimeter for the soccer field), and permit up to eleven 20-foot light fixtures to keep balls and people on the property.

Supporters, including church member Nadeem Sarkis and project architect Amina (Mina) Arsenios, said the upgrade would provide a safer, supervised play area for children and help prevent balls from leaving the site and creating traffic hazards. Arsenios described the new design as surrounding an existing playground with netting and fencing to reduce the chance children chase balls into the street.

Neighbors voiced concerns about the proposal’s impact on neighborhood character, pedestrian access and nighttime light. Resident Laura Lee Long said moving or enlarging the fence would reduce walking space and alter the look of the block; Kathy Wright and another neighbor raised worries about noise, late-night activity and glare from lighting on a curved nearby roadway, asking whether the city should require earlier light shut-off times.

Commissioners pressed staff and the applicant on specifics: staff said the taller fencing would be limited to the field areas (not across the entire parcel) and that the existing 6-foot wrought-iron fence along Parkview would remain. Staff pointed to Condition 3, which requires downward-directed, baffled lighting that meets zoning standards; staff also said the proposed hours of operation anticipate activity concluding at 10:00 p.m. with lighting allowed to remain on until 11:00 p.m., and that the city could impose more restrictive hours as part of the CUP if the commission chose to do so.

Commission discussion highlighted that adjacent parking-lot poles range about 20–24 feet and that churches are typically processed through a CUP, which allows the commission to add conditions such as lighting limits. Commissioners also confirmed the applicant reported 12 trees affected by the proposal but said the applicant had addressed tree replacement in the submittal.

After rebuttal comments from both supporters and opponents, Commissioner Martin moved to accept staff’s recommendation to advance the project; Vice Chair Biddle seconded the motion. The commission approved the motion with Commissioner Brent Oliver absent.

The staff presentation and the record list the project as Conditional Use Permit 25-0026 and Zone Modification 25-0008; the commission’s approval advances the permitting process but does not preclude appeals. Staff read the appeal process on the record: written appeals to the city clerk must be filed within 10 days of the commission’s decision.

A continuance was also recorded earlier in the meeting: non-consent item 6a was continued to the May 7, 2026 Planning Commission meeting at staff’s request to allow the applicant time to respond to a comment.

The Planning Commission meeting adjourned at 6:24 p.m.