Board approves expansion of Thai temple on Steele Road with conditions limiting access and requiring buffers

The Board of Commissioners approved a special exception for the expansion of an existing Thai Buddhist temple at 498 Steele Road, allowing the temple to construct a two‑story worship hall and a covered pavilion on an adjoining 28‑acre parcel.

Wendy Craigie, land‑use counsel for the temple, presented the site plan and renderings and said the proposed worship hall would match the campus’s existing architecture. The temple submitted updated building elevations showing occupied portions of the structure at roughly 32 feet, 8 inches — under the county’s 35‑foot height limit for habitable spaces — so no height variance was required for human‑occupied areas.

Speakers in support described the temple as a spiritual refuge and community resource; supporters included members who travel to the site for meditation and senior services. Opponents who live along Manly/Manley Road raised concerns about traffic, view impacts, lighting and the size of the proposed building. “The last thing we want to see is a Buddhist temple sticking up… it’s going to ruin that view,” Wayne Holt said, noting his house faces the property.

County staff recommended approval after confirming the project met code requirements for places of worship (Section 503). The Board’s approval included conditions recommended by staff: (1) no general access to Manly Road except restricted emergency access approved by the Fire Marshal, (2) the buffer along Manly Road to be evaluated in the field by the Community Development director with evergreen plantings added where gaps exist, (3) all building permits and inspections to be obtained, and (4) an erosion and sediment control plan submitted for approval. Because the temple provided revised elevations showing the occupied building portions below 35 feet, staff and the Board removed an earlier condition that would have required a variance for height.

Why it matters: The approval allows a long‑standing religious institution to expand while the Board imposed site‑level mitigation to reduce potential neighborhood impacts. The conditions are focused on preserving views and limiting new access points to maintain the area’s rural character.

Next steps: The temple will obtain building permits and submit erosion control plans and a finalized landscape/buffer plan for county approval before construction may begin.

Speakers and staff in this article appeared during application 2506S (special exception for expansion of an approved religious worship center).