Administrative Zoning Public Hearing – November 19, 2025
Administrative Zoning Public Hearing – November 19, 2025
The meeting, held in hybrid format on November 19, 2025, was presided over by Zoning Administrator Amber Blisinski. The sole agenda item was a request by Xi Cheng for a conditional use permit to allow church use (Bible study groups) in an existing 7,546-square-foot building at 165 East Dana Street in the MM General Industrial Zoning District. Staff recommended approval, and the zoning administrator approved the permit after public comment.
Public Comments & Testimony
- Avalon Huey (Minister, Mountain View Chinese Christian Church, located at 175 East Dana Street) expressed concerns:
- Insufficient parking capacity, noting that his church already has parking challenges on Friday evenings and Sunday mornings and requires written or oral reciprocal parking agreements with neighbors. The addition of another church with coinciding hours could worsen this.
- Additional vehicle traffic may increase risk of injury at the intersection of Dana Street and the downhill drive from the bridge over Highway 85 toward South Wisman. He requested traffic data (speed studies, parking usage, collision diagrams) to assess safety.
- He asked the applicant for a point of contact should disagreements arise between the churches, and asked the city which department to contact if tensions affect community harmony.
Discussion Items
- Staff Presentation (Vincent Kwan, Associate Planner):
- The 40,500-square-foot lot contains a building previously used as office space. Proposed church use would host approximately 45 people on site at a time.
- No parking minimum applies because the site is within one-half mile of a major transit station (per zoning code Section 363250). However, the project provides 46 parking spaces, exceeding typical requirements.
- Operational hours are limited: Tuesdays and Fridays from 7:30 p.m. to 9:00 p.m., and Sundays from 10:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m., which do not conflict with adjacent business hours at 155 East Hamish Street.
- Staff recommended approval, finding the project categorically exempt from CEQA under Section 15301.
- Applicant Statement (Xi Cheng):
- He represents the church, which has been part of the Mountain View community for over 25 years, serving local families and students. He emphasized the group’s commitment to responsible use of the building, limited hours, ample parking, and being a good neighbor.
- Zoning Administrator’s Response:
- Acknowledged the public comments but noted that the applicant can accommodate all parking on site and is not subject to a minimum parking requirement under state law. The project’s CEQA exemption means no additional traffic analysis is required. She encouraged the churches to communicate directly after the meeting.
Key Outcomes
- Approval: The zoning administrator approved the conditional use permit for church use at 165 East Dana Street, based on the findings and conditions posted online, public comment letters, written testimony, and application materials reviewed by staff.
- Appeal: The decision is appealable to the City Council within 10 calendar days.
- CEQA: The project was determined to be categorically exempt (Class 15301).
Note: The transcript of the meeting references November 12, 2025, but per the instruction provided, the meeting date is recorded as November 19, 2025.
Meeting Transcript
Thank you. All right, good afternoon. Welcome to the administrative zoning public hearing of November 12, 2025. My name is Amber Blisinski. I'm presiding over the hearing today as the zoning administrator. I'd like to call the meeting to order at 4 p.m. Today's hearing will operate in a hybrid format, staff, the applicants, and some community members are in person. However, we'll also ask if community members joining us virtually want to speak on an item at certain points in the meeting. When those opportunities arise, typically during the public comment portion of each agenda item, members of the public wishing to comment may do so by clicking on the raise hand feature in Zoom when I announce the item on which you wish to speak. Speakers will be notified of their turn shortly before they're called on, and all speakers, virtual or in person, will have two to three minutes to provide comments based on how many people are commenting. If you're in person and you wish to comment on the item, please fill out a yellow speaker card. So I'm assuming only one person in this room is speaking on the item. If you also wish to, please fill out that yellow speaker card and give it to Roxanne so we can accurately spell your name for the meeting minutes. So the next portion of the meeting is oral communications from the public. This is the time set aside for people wishing to address the zoning administrator on any matter that's not on the agenda. Speakers are limited to three minutes and state law prohibits any action on any items which are not on the agenda. So is there anyone in the room who wants to speak on any items that are not on the agenda? And if there's anyone online, so items not on the agenda, go ahead and raise your hand. Nobody in the room? Okay, nobody online. So we'll now move to item three, which is the Zoning Administrator Public Hearing. So item 3.1 is 165 East Dana Street with a request for a conditional use permit to allow church use to occupy an existing 7,546 square foot building for Bible study groups. And a recommended determination that the project is categorically exempt pursuant to section 15301 of the California Environmental Quality Act guidelines. Vincent Kwan is the project planner. Vincent, do you have a staff presentation? Yes, I do. Thanks. Good afternoon, Vincent Kwan, Associate Planner, here to present the project at 165 East Dana Street, request for a conditional use permit to allow a church view for a Bible study session. The project is located at 165 East Dana Street, which is in the MM General Industrial Zoning District. Subject lot is approximately 40,500 square feet in size in the existing building for the church lease was approximately 7,500 square feet in size that was previously used as an office. This is highlighted in the image shown in the presentation with the box in red. A conditional use permit is required for any church-slash-religious-type uses in the MM zoning district and is required to demonstrate the proposed uses in close proximity to residential uses. The proposed location at 165 East Dana Street highlighted in the red box is in close proximity to several neighborhoods, which includes neighborhoods along Mercy Street, West Dana, Calderon Ave on the west side of Highway 85, and also near neighborhoods along Moorpark Way and south of Highway 237. These neighborhoods are all highlighted in red, shown on the map above. The primary use of this space will be used for church, for Bible study groups, which anticipates approximately 45 people on site at a time. As mentioned in the staff report, the project is not subject to any parking requirements since it is within one half mile of major transit station per section 363250 of the zoning code. Although the project is not subject to any parking requirements, the project site does have a total of 46 parking spaces, which exceeds the number of parking spaces that would typically be required for the city code. In addition, the proposed use has limited operational hours, which are limited to Tuesday and Friday from 7.30 to 9 p.m. and Sundays from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. and do not coincide with the hours of operations of the adjacent business operating at 155 East Hamish Street. And that concludes staff's presentation and staff is recommending the zoning administrator to
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