Clayton Community Church home at last

CLAYTON, CA — After a 25-year search and two false starts, Clayton Community Church finally found a place to call home when the Clayton Planning Commission unanimously approved their plans for a 13,000 square foot building on 4.4 acres high on the hill adjacent to Mt. Diablo Elementary School at the April 27 meeting.

The project had no trouble sailing through the planning commission despite objections from the neighbors.

“It was a clean project and met all the requirements of the Clayton zoning codes including setbacks, building heights and parking,” vice-chair Terri Denslow said after the 5-0 vote. There were no significant environmental issues, and the commission adopted a Mitigated Negative Declaration and a Tree Replacement Program.

Neighbors fear traffic

Residents closest to the church fear the increased traffic will cause even greater congestion in their small neighborhood which is already subject to gridlock twice a day during pick up and drop off at the elementary school.

“We plan our doctor appointments and trips out around school hours,” Charmetta Mann told the Pioneer after the decision. Mann’s family originally settled the property in 1870. “None of the neighbors want this.”

Because school hours are during the week and the church operation will mainly be on Sundays, the traffic patterns won’t collide, commissioner Ed Miller noted prior to the final vote.

“Traffic going to the church will be heading straight into the church parking lot, not queuing up in a long procession.” The church’s 160 parking spaces will be available for school event overflow and parents can use the church driveway for turnaround which will help move things through a little faster.

CCC pastor Shawn Robinson was jubilant. “It’s been 25 long years,” he told the Pioneer in an interview following the meeting. “We just want a permanent place to do God’s work.”

Third times a charm

This is the third attempt at finding a permanent home for the church. In 2006, when membership was over 600, the church made an offer on 19 acres on Marsh Creek Road with plans to build a worship center, gymnasium and theater. However, the high construction cost for two bridges and a run-in with the Alameda whipsnake sent that plan packing.

The church then turned its attention to downtown Clayton. In a surprise move the next year, the church purchased the 1.7-acre lot adjacent to their administrative offices on Main St. with plans to build a smaller version of the Marsh Creek plan on the combined parcel. But once more, they ran up against spiraling costs when the city required more environmental studies than the church could afford. They abandoned that project in 2011 and instead bought the 4.4 acres on the hillside.

Temporary solutions

The church owns the old Pioneer Inn on Main St. but the building lacks space for services. The MDUSD gym at Diablo View Middle School served as a temporary solution until COVID-19 restrictions closed all school facilities in March 2021. Since then, services have been in the church parking lot.

Robinson estimates construction costs to be about $3 million and says the church has raised most of it through their capital campaign, Imagine More. If they run short, they can sell the downtown property, he said.

The scaled down hillside project is in line with the current small congregation. Once over 600, fewer than 300 attend services regularly now. Robinson says he expects the congregation to stay small. “What you see is what you get,” he said.

Visit the Clayton Community Church website for more information.