New Berlin church sidesteps some burning issues as plans proceed

New Berlin - Some drivers on Greenfield Avenue along the stretch between Division and Calhoun roads might notice smoke drifting into the air from a house on Tuesday.

But Saturday, it won't so subtle as flames lick the air when the New Berlin Fire Department intentionally burns down the house, for training purposes, on a site that will become part of WeatherStone Church, 1500 S. West Lane.

Firefighters will be inside lighting fires, crawling through heavy smoke and then extinguishing the fires, said Fire Chief Lloyd Bertram last week.

"It's an important opportunity to get training," he said.

And the exercise serves another purpose - a demolition that clears the way for the church, which last week got final approval from the Plan Commission to build a 1,000-seat sanctuary as an addition to the former Calhoun School building where the church now holds services in the gym.

The church bought the former school building in 2004. A church is allowed under the school's old institutional zoning as a conditional use.

Smoldering opposition

Although the church owns all three homes that will be removed for the project, many of the rest of the neighbors objected to WeatherStone's expansion.

They said there is enough commotion there now with people coming and going night and day between church activities and the day care center operating there. They fear for when the church of nearly 500 grows to fill the 1,000-seat sanctuary. (Church officials said WeatherStone has grown about 10 percent a year.)

"It doesn't fit" in a quiet neighborhood, said Bill Benjamin, 1435 S. West Lane.

Another neighbor counted 520 cars going and coming on an average Monday in December from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. And that doesn't include the 80-plus vehicles after 6 p.m., said Gerard Vukovic, 17606 W. Westview Lane.

"That's unbelievable," he said.

At least the school would quiet down after the school day, said Cathy Daeda, 1425 S. West Lane, but there's something at the church every night.

Even worse, from her perspective, is that once the hundreds of trees are cut down for the parking lot expansion, "I'll be looking at a parking lot," Daeda said.

So far, only 41 trees are planned to be replaced, although that number could go up. City codes call for replacement of 292, but there will not be room for them all to be replaced, officials said. The church will pay the city for each tree it fails to replace and the city will use that money to help with general reforestation efforts.

Accommodating the concerns

To try to help neighbors by taking some of the traffic off of West Lane, the Plan Commission held out for the church to build a driveway out to Calhoun Road, making it an alternate entrance and exit. The driveway will serve about 40 percent of the parking lot, said Dennis Batty, project architect.

Church officials initially had not wanted to complete the Calhoun connection just yet because of the costs - an estimated $80,000.

But the church relented and, to be fair, has responded well to the city's requests for other changes to help protect neighbors, Mayor Jack Chiovatero noted.

It has repositioned parking, added screening so that headlights won't shine into windows as much, and took steps to keep youths from hanging around in the parking lot after activities.

Some city officials are happy that a church is in the building as opposed to other uses that could go in under institutional zoning - such as hospitals, a postal station even a halfway house.

Construction is slated to start in June when excavation for the foundations will begin, according to Mary Claire Lanser, community outreach consultant. The new sanctuary should be finished in January, she said.