Split Panel Approves Buddhist Monastery

YORBA LINDA —  The Myanmar Buddhist Society of America was granted permission Wednesday by a divided Planning Commission to build Orange County’s largest Buddhist monastery in Yorba Linda.

A diverse group of religious leaders that included Catholics, Mormons, Buddhists and one Sikh guru, along with several professors and a former ambassador to the United States from Sri Lanka, attended the meeting to assure planning commissioners that the city would only benefit from housing the peace-loving monks.

“In such a violent time, this community will be blessed to have this monastery,” said the Venerable Dr. Havanpola Ratanasara, president of the American Buddhist Congress, “because wherever we go we carry with us the message of peace and harmony.”

But karmic matters were of little concern to those residents who opposed the project. Rather, they said they didn’t want the monastery built because it is incompatible with the neighborhood and will bring noise and traffic.

“The architecture might be an irritant to some of the surrounding neighbors,” said Lindon Baker, a resident. “I think you should consider something more than the spiritual value of this project.”

Wednesday’s 3-2 vote in favor of the project settled the long-running dispute that has pitted town residents against the monks for more than a year.

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The original application for permission to build the religious complex was denied last January in a unanimous vote of the Planning Commission.

But city law allowed the monks to submit a new proposal, so long as they made major changes to the building plans.

For instance, a 75-foot pagoda adorned with gold leaf--which violated the city’s height restrictions--was dropped from the proposal.

The buildings’ colors were changed to match the earth tones of the surrounding tract homes. And most of the Asian architectural touches, with the exception of some wood carving on the eaves on the buildings, have been taken out.

The current proposal calls for building a 10,000-square-foot meditation hall and a 9,000-square-foot living quarters for the monks on a five-acre hillside property near the North Orange County Community College campus.

Despite the changes in the building plans, however, many residents remained skeptical that the monastery would make a positive contribution to the neighborhood. Most were sure the monastery would become the focal point for Buddhists from across Southern California.

In the end, however, the applicant, Tin Htoon, successfully allayed the concerns of the majority of the board. These are Burmese monks, he explained, so it was not likely that Buddhists of all nationalities would make regular visits to the temple.

And although there would be approximately six annual celebrations on the grounds, loud noise is strictly prohibited by Buddhist practice at a monastery, so they won’t disturb residents.

“This is going to be a quiet place where people can reflect on the teaching of Buddha,” Htoon said.