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Neighbors and church urge commissioners to deny triplex near Lee Chapel; planning commission approves with buffer and fencing conditions
Summary
Residents and Lee Chapel AME Church speakers urged denial of a proposed three‑unit development at 527 Temple Street, citing parking, traffic and disruption to a long‑standing church; the planning commission approved the conditional use with conditions to require access off Temple Street, a maximum south-side buffer and a type‑two/three fence.
The Auburn Planning Commission approved a conditional‑use recommendation for a three‑unit residential project at 527 Temple Street after hearing sustained public opposition from members of Lee Chapel African Methodist Episcopal Church.
Multiple speakers representing the church and the neighborhood said the site is closely tied to church activity and that adding multifamily units would create parking overflow, increase traffic on a dead‑end street and reduce safe, accessible access for elderly and mobility‑limited congregants. Anicka Perry, who identified herself as a long‑time member, told the commission the church dates to 1926 and urged commissioners to “look beyond this proposal as simply another housing project” and to consider the broader impact on the congregation’s access and community role. Dwayne Carter and Alfonso Carter also described parking and circulation concerns on the single‑entry street.
The applicant’s representative from the Foresite Group said the proposal is three three‑bedroom units with on‑site parking and that the development is “overparked by one space” for visitors, adding the project would access the site through the applicant’s property rather than relying on church parking. The applicant also said buffers, fences and other site conditions can be required through the development‑review process.
Commissioners discussed buffer yards, a type‑two or type‑three opaque fence along the church (south) boundary, and the option to require the applicant to connect to Washington Court if future redevelopment calls for it. The commission approved the conditional use with additional conditions requiring access off Temple Street, a maximum buffer yard on the church side, and type‑two or type‑three fencing to screen the development from the church.
The decision allows the project to advance to final plan review subject to the stated buffering and fencing conditions and any standard development‑review adjustments.
