Latter-day Saints church pauses temple project to mollify neighbors

Proposals for a new Mormon temple in Bakersfield have run aground amid opposition from neighbors who find the planned building’s views unfavorable.

City of Bakersfield spokesman Joe Conroy said Friday that plans have been tabled as the church prepares a presentation “to better address the community’s concerns.”

This came four months after The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints proposed a height increase to its planned temple in southwest Bakersfield to 124 feet. At more than 12 stories tall, the building would command one of the highest views in the city — more than double the height permitted under its zoning.

Once built, only card-carrying members of the church will be admitted to the white-walled temple, a 30,000-square-foot building adorning huge windows and an 84-foot, towering spire. And that’s a problem, at least for the keycard-carrying members of the Brighton Parks, a gated community next door.

The proposed changes came to the attention of 85 homeowners in February, via a letter sent by the city's planning department to homes within a 300-foot radius of the site — a 13-acre plot located at the northwest corner of Stockdale Highway and Jewetta Avenue. It was purchased for $10.66 million.

Several residents shared their grievances at a public hearing hosted by the city Planning Commission on Feb. 27. A follow-up hearing was set for April 4, but was canceled by the applicant, Conroy said.

“No further items on this modification request have been scheduled for the Planning Commission at this time,” Conroy wrote. “We are waiting on the applicant.”

Homeowners at Brighton Parks have since mobilized, forming an ad-hoc committee and obtaining legal representation through Hagan Law Group LLP.

In a GoFundMe post, the group also warned of dramatic lights that typically illuminate Mormon temples well into the night, though this has not yet been proposed to the city.

“After much due diligence, there seems to be NO compelling reason for these modifications,” wrote Brighton Parks homeowner Gregory Ketchum in the post. “It has also become obvious that in order to strengthen our efforts to thwart this potential approval by the city of Bakersfield, we will need a budget.”

As of Friday, 80 people had donated $9,000 to the GoFundMe page, which will go toward a legal fund.

In a statement Friday, the group said its members “welcome a temple to the neighborhood,” over something like a shopping center. Their fight, they said, stems around the size of the building and its effect on the neighborhood, not the Mormon faith itself.

“This would be one of the tallest buildings in Bakersfield and is not compatible with our adjacent neighborhood,” the group wrote. “As homeowners we simply ask that developers follow the rules that are in place and respect the people who are already living there in good faith.”

Bruce Freeman, the area’s councilman, had little to offer Friday in the way of an opinion, adding that he hopes “the two sides can work out a solution.”

“That’s always best,” he added.

Whereas Kern County’s estimated 21,000 Mormons attend Sunday services and other events at neighborhood meetinghouses, a temple is a separate affair. It’s meant, almost by definition, to be a visually dominant force, to evoke heaven-inspired awe among its visitors and accommodate certain rites for Mormons whose good standing has been attested by the church.

Historically, their placement has been at the direction of a celestial calling, decreed by God. The temple in Bakersfield was announced by Latter-day Saints President Russell Nelson, who named it among 15 cities worldwide at a conference last April.

“Jesus Christ is the reason we build temples,” Nelson said. “Each is His holy house.”

Of the 15 locations named, six were in the U.S. and two were in California. With the completion of the temple in Bakersfield, it would be the 12th temple in the state that houses about 728,000 Mormons — nearly 2% of its population.

While other Christian denominations have seen their flocks dwindle, the Mormon church has grown by bounds. Since 1997, its network of temples has grown from 51 to 350, to include those under construction, dedicated or newly announced. According to Latter-day Saints statistics, there have been 133 temples announced worldwide since 2018.

“Making covenants and receiving essential ordinances in the temple, as well as seeking to draw closer to Him there, will bless your life in ways no other kind of worship can,” Nelson said. “For this reason, we are doing all within our power to make the blessings of the temple more accessible to our members around the world.”