The Bayside village board on July 6 voted unanimously to issue a “conditional use permit” to The Shul for the construction of a synagogue building facing Brown Deer Rd.
However, this is just “the first step” and it will be “a long way” before construction of a building is approved, said village trustee Robb DeGraff.
According to the amended motion that was approved, the permit is subject to 15 conditions, including:
• The Shul’s leaders and Bayside village president Samuel Dickman must negotiate a development agreement, which the village board must approve.
• The site, where three houses now stand between N. Rexleigh Dr. and N. Pelham Parkway, “shall be used for religious activities and shall not be used for commercial purposes of any kind.”
• Hours of operation are limited to 8 a.m. to 10 p.m., with “no more than 12 events past 10 p.m. each year on prior notice.”
• The Shul will make annual payments in lieu of taxes for village services; any change to that must be approved by a supermajority of the village board (six of its seven members).
• In an amendment added at the meeting, the village board will “review and approve, deny, or amend the decisions of the architectural review committee regarding the development of the property.”
Though village and state law did not require it, the board opened its meeting on this agenda item with comments from the public on the project.
Some immediate neighbors of the properties expressed opposition to the project. They said that they would be looking at a parking lot instead of residential homes, that the construction did not harmonize with the neighborhood’s residential character, that The Shul’s payment in lieu of taxes would not compensate Bayside for the loss of property tax revenue and that the building’s outdoor lighting and storm water drainage would affect neighboring homes.
DeGraff explained in response that village ordinances allowed for religious uses of residential properties; that the architectural review committee would be “a tough committee” in evaluating the design and look of the building; and that it is already “against the law” for lighting and storm water to spill off a property into neighboring homes.
Rabbi Shmaya Shmotkin, spiritual leader of The Shul, told The Chronicle that he was “very pleased” by the results of the meeting.
“We know this is something that’s going to be a tremendous asset to the Jewish community as a whole as well as to the village,” he said. “We think the village board understands that this will enhance the quality of life in the village and bring new vibrancy to the community.”
The next step will be to negotiate the development agreement, a process Shmotkin said has “already begun … I don’t anticipate it taking very long.”
Shmotkin said after that, The Shul will complete the purchase of the properties, “map out a fund-raising strategy,” draw up detailed plans for the building and grounds “in consultation with the neighbors” and submit those plans to the village’s architectural review committee.
Shmotkin emphasized that The Shul’s fund-raising campaign “will be done at a time when we think it will not adversely affect” the Milwaukee Jewish Federation’s Community Capital Campaign. “We’ve been in touch with federation leaders to plan it as such,” he said.
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