Rathdrum to consider permit for new church

RATHDRUM - The Rathdrum City Council will hold public hearings tonight on a conditional-use permit for a church and a 13-acre annexation request.

Rathdrum Bible Church is requesting a permit to operate a new building on Wright Street between Stevens and Alabama streets.

The church owns six contiguous lots fronting Wright to the south, Alabama to the west and Stevens to the east. It has been operating four of the lots since the 1970s and later bought two adjacent lots for expansion.

Two buildings - the existing church and a home - are slated to be removed as part of the expansion plans and a new 9,520-square church will be built. The current church is 4,750 square feet.

"The proposed new building will consolidate church functions into one updated structure that meets the space needs of the ministry," a project narrative states.

The church recently added another service to accommodate growth.

Roadway, parking and landscaping improvements would be needed for a permit. The building is sited to preserve existing trees as much as possible, the narrative states.

The church would remain operating in its current building during the majority of the construction. A modular building is proposed for the site during construction for temporary classroom space.

Construction is expected to last about a year.

There are no privately-owned parcels that share a property line with the church parcels.

• In other business, the council will consider a 13-acre annexation request north of Park Rose Estates and west of Meyer Road. The owners of the land are Larry and Helen Clark, and the applicant is the Rathdrum Seventh-Day Adventist Church.

A community center and charter school are among the possible future uses for the site.

The planning commission in November unanimously recommended that both the annexation and conditional-use permit be approved.

The meeting starts at 6 p.m. at 8047 W. Main St.