Yamhill County leaves record open in contested church land-use hearing after weeks of negotiation

The Yamhill County Board of Commissioners on Feb. 19 left the record open in a contested conditional‑use permit for a proposed church on Northeast Chehalem Drive after hours of testimony from the applicant, neighbors and county staff over traffic, stormwater, septic and access‑road maintenance.

The applicant, Chehalem Christian Fellowship, represented by attorney Andrew Stamp, presented negotiated conditions intended to address neighbors' concerns, including either paving the southern access road or entering a shared maintenance agreement requiring grading and oiling at least twice a year, landscape screening, culvert reshaping to manage stormwater and a prohibition on homeless camping on the property while the church operates. "That road was accepted by the county, not for maintenance," Stamp told the board while explaining the applicant's view that the right of way was dedicated and publicly used in the 1970s.

Neighbors and appellants raised multiple concerns during the hearing. Resident Paul Natale, who submitted a six‑page traffic review for the record, said the nearby North Valley–Chehalem intersection had a prior fatal crash and that adding concentrated church traffic could increase the risk. "This intersection needs to be dealt with," he said. Other neighbors questioned septic capacity, long‑term growth in parking and whether the rural character of the AF‑10 zone would be altered by paved parking and lighting.

County staff and outside reviewers provided a mixed technical picture. The county planner read the applicable review criteria and noted that staff had tentatively approved the conditional‑use permit. Public works told the board Chehalem Drive is classified as a major collector and, based on May 2024 vehicle counts, believed the roadway could accommodate the additional traffic but recommended intersection improvements at the Chehalem–Spur Road location before building permits are issued. The county sanitarian confirmed a site evaluation had been approved in July and warned that septic design and permits would be required before septic work proceeded.

The applicant's traffic engineer, Melissa Webb of AKS Engineering and Forestry, presented a traffic impact study that used Sunday counts at the church's current meeting location and standard trip‑generation assumptions. Webb said the study found the site access operating at Level of Service A and the Chehalem–North Valley intersection at Level of Service B under build‑out conditions, with queueing limited to a few vehicles at peak departure. "The intersections are operating at or below the required performance standards," she said, and reported no fatalities in the five‑year crash data reviewed.

The applicant and appellants agreed on several draft conditions during the hearing but did not finalize terms. The board accepted a motion to leave the written record open so parties can file additional evidence and rebuttals. The schedule set by staff requires written testimony or evidence to be submitted to the planning department by 5 p.m. Feb. 26; written rebuttals may be filed by 5 p.m. March 5; the applicant may submit final written argument without new evidence by 5 p.m. March 12. The board will reopen the hearing at 10 a.m. March 19 in Room 32 of the Yamhill County Courthouse for staff recommendation.

The meeting also disposed of routine business: the consent agenda passed unanimously, the board approved an intent to award the 2026 North Valley Road FDR and culvert replacement project to Roy Houghs Construction LLC for $217,514.50, approved an amendment to an agreement between Yamhill County Health & Human Services and Locum Tenens (board order 15‑269, effective April 2, 2026), and approved intergovernmental agreement No. 057247 with the Oregon Health Authority for PSRB tort liability coverage (Jan. 1, 2026–June 30, 2027).