Politics & Government
Neighbors, Temple Members Express Relief, Concern Over Compromise
Representatives of the Hindu Temple of St. Louis and the Parkview Valley Estates subdivision had their arrangement approved by the St. Louis County Council late Tuesday.
Residents of Parkview Valley Estates, off Weidman Road, and members the Hindu Temple of St. Louis, recently compromised on the use of four acres of land owned by the temple involving a planned community center and parking lot.
Tuesday, the agreed upon plan was approved by members of the St. Louis County Council, though neither the subdivision residents nor members of the Hindu Temple sounded thrilled with the results.
The distance from personal property lines to a retaining wall for a 240-space parking lot was main point of contention; representatives of the temple wanted 10 feet of space between the parking lot and adjacent homes, and the neighbors sought 15 feet, which the temple's representatives later agreed to.
Find out what's happening in Ballwin-Ellisvillewith free, real-time updates from Patch.
“I think it’s the best we could have hoped to ever get out of this whole thing,” said resident James Mason, who has lived in his house since 1979 when the subdivision was built, and a single house surrounded by trees was all that was on the site next door.
Neighborhood trustee Kevin Mowery said they were frustrated because they didn’t think the planning commission was taking property values into account.
Find out what's happening in Ballwin-Ellisvillewith free, real-time updates from Patch.
“The planning commission and our councilwoman (Coleen Wasinger) were reluctant to take any position that wasn’t strictly enforcement of the zoning laws,” he said. “I don’t think the zoning laws of the county protect the interests of the homeowners.”
In an email to Patch, Hindu Temple Trustees Chairman Vijaya Kumar Buddhiraju said he wasn’t happy about conceding the space.
“As the temple is expected to manage this area, it may become more problematic,” he said. “As the chair of the trustees, whatever I do will be inherited by the next Board of Trustees. So each board is under pressure to be careful about making lasting decisions.”
Parkview Estates won the five-foot concession, but some neighbors still seem leery of the intentions of the temple.
“Hopefully it’s going to turn out according to the plan they showed us,” Mason said. “At this point, we couldn’t stop it. How much money could we spend to delay it? You’re delaying the inevitable. We were told that.”