Costco, church plan to expand.

Byline: REAL ESTATE By Randi Bjornstad The Register-Guard

Proposed expansions of both commerce and religion have won preliminary approval from the city of Eugene recently, with final OKs to go into effect automatically if no one appeals the applications by the deadlines.

Costco Wholesale asks to boost the size of its building at 2828 Chad Drive by 8 percent, adding just more than 11,000 square feet for a new loading dock on the north side of the building and a tobacco sales space and other storage space on the south.

In granting the request for site review modification, the city planning director determined that the additions to the giant retailer's store will not affect the use of the site or generate any additional traffic.

Any one who feels "adversely affected or aggrieved" by this decision may appeal by 5 p.m. on Aug. 20.

If an appeal is received, the application will be referred to the Eugene Hearings Official. Costco has received city permission to amend development of its 9-acre property.

In 1997, Costco sought and received a zone change on 2.25 acres on the east end of the property to accommodate more parking. Permission to install the gasoline fueling station came in 2000, and included four pump islands, a canopy and reconfiguration of parking on the west side of the site, along Coburg Road.

The main Costco warehouse has more than 140,000 square feet of shopping space and 607 parking spaces.

City grants permit

A city of Eugene hearings official has granted a conditional use permit that will allow the Valley River Assembly of God Church to build a new 7,440 square-foot sanctuary on its 8-acre property at 900 Robin Hood Ave., northeast of the Valley River shopping center across Delta Highway.

The permit also will allow the church to create 39 more parking spaces , bringing the total to 86.

Up to now, the Valley River Assembly of God Church has been designated as a legal nonconforming use; when it was built, churches were not required to have conditional use permits in low-density residential neighborhoods.

The newly acquired permit legalizes the new construction and sanctions the continued existence of the existing 5,583 square-foot church building, sports fields and open areas. Under the code, if a nonconforming use is destroyed or discontinued, it can't be replaced.

The hearings official levied 16 conditions that the church must meet before final approval can be granted. They include requirements for fencing to buffer the surrounding area from headlights in the parking lots; cessation of outdoor activities, including music, by 10 p.m.; construction of a sidewalk the entire length of Robin Hood Avenue; tree preservation or replacement; coverage of bicycle parking spaces; and planting of high-screen landscaping along adjacent residentially zoned properties.

Anyone wishing to appeal the conditional use permit must file with the city of Eugene's planning division no later than 5 p.m. on Aug. 22.

- Real Estate Report runs Tuesdays. Reporter Randi Bjornstad can be reached at 338-2321 or [e-mail].