Residents Say Proposed Synagogue Doesn't Fit Neighborhood

Wednesday night’s Birmingham Planning Board meeting was packed with residents concerned about plans to turn a residential home into a synagogue.

The advisory board unanimously voted down the ’s preliminary plans for a synagogue at the corner of Lakeside and Quarton, as well as the group’s request for a special land use permit. Planning Board members Scott Clein and Carroll DeWeese were absent Wednesday night.

“I don’t think this fits the fabric of the neighborhood,” Planning Board member Bert Koseck said. “As I look at this proposal, it’s not working from a design aspect to conform to the ordinances.”

Rabbi Boruch Cohen, head of the Birmingham-Bloomfield Chai Center, and his family currently reside in the home. However, Cohen’s wife Ita Leah Cohen said after six years of searching for an appropriate place to build a synagogue, they thought offering up their property would be their best option.

“Yes, cost is a factor, but there are a lot of constraints for a Shul … Believe you me, we would be the last family to want to move away,” Cohen said. “The Chai Center is a huge light and will bring blessings to this community.”

The Birmingham-Bloomfield Chai Center’s plan calls for a renovation that would transform the home, creating a large dining area and a sanctuary able to fit 126 people. Plans also call for a parking lot for 21 cars at the site. There will be no dwelling areas in the home after the renovation.

Churches and synagogues are permitted in residential zones with a special land use permit, which must ultimately be approved by the Birmingham City Commission. The planning board, however, typically hears these requests first and makes its own recommendation to the commission.

Neighbors speak out against plan

The biggest hurdle the Chai Center faced Wednesday evening was public opinion. A show of hands illustrated that overwhelmingly, the majority of those that packed the meeting were in opposition to the group’s plans. Planning Director Jana Ecker said before the meeting, the city received a petition against the project with 225 signatures, as well as 37 letters also in opposition.

Neighbors and residents spoke out against several parts of the plan, from the precedent such a project — converting homes into places of worship — might set for the city, to the look of the proposed building, to traffic on Lakeside Drive.

"This property will be perceived as commercial and I think the residents' home values will be severely impacted,” said Chris Pero, a Birmingham real estate agent.

Scott Seltzer, also of Birmingham, said the plans for the proposed synagogue stands out from the look of the community. The building is designed in a contemporary style with white-painted brick and a flat-tiered roof.

“They’re building a structure now that’s not going to blend into the community — it’s going to stand out,” Seltzer said. “This white building does not represent what the street is right now.”

Others said traffic on Lakeside is already heavy and a synagogue at one end would only make it worse.

“The traffic on Lakeside is horrible," resident Bill Dunn said. "People speed and it’s a cut-through."

Not everyone was opposed to the plan, however. Many in attendance pointed out that Birmingham currently lacks a synagogue and building one would make the neighborhood attractive to Jewish families.

“Yes, everybody can find one reason not to move forward but they need to look at the big picture,” Birmingham resident Todd Mendel said. “People are attracted to synagogues, especially if they need to walk to them for their religion.”

Elaine Yaker, owner of , agreed.

“I think this plan is beautiful. There are many contemporary homes in Birmingham,” she said. “The beauty of Birmingham is that there are variations of homes.”

Breaking with city ordinances

Besides public opinion, the nuts and bolts of the project’s denial comes down to multiple violations of city code. There isn’t enough parking in the proposed plan, city staff said — the synagogue would need one more spot to meet ordinances. Also, current plans has the building sitting 26 feet from the road. City code stipulates that since there are homes across the street, the building must match the average setback as other homes on the same side of the road — a distance that comes in at 47 feet.

Despite the denial, the group may still move forward with their plans by appealing to the Board of Zoning Appeals, which may grant variances for those parts the plan that violate city ordinances, such as the setback and parking lot.

Chai Center representatives noted that they would prefer to keep the parking lot as is and would discuss reducing the building’s maximum capacity. As for the building being too close to the road, the architect said if they don’t receive a variance from the Board of Zoning Appeals, they would consider redesigning the building.

Concerning the special land use permit, the Chai Center may still petition city commission for the permit despite not winning the planning board’s recommendation.

However, if the project is to continue, this isn't the last the Chai Center has seen of the planning board; the board must also hear the group's final site plans. The group may submit new plans at any time.