Sufism Reoriented says it, not the county, initiated the request for an EIR for its new sanctuary

In a February 26 post, I wrote that the Contra Costa County Conservation and Community Development Department has asked Sufism Reoriented to prepare an environmental impact report for its controversial plans to build a 66,000-square-foot sanctuary in the Saranap neighborhood. I had received two different versions over who made the initial request for the EIR: the county or Sufism Reoriented. 

When I spoke with county senior planner LaShun Cross, she told me that the county had come to the decision to ask for the EIR. She said the county concluded that it should require maximum scrutiny of the project’s environmental impact because of the project’s size and concerns expressed by residents.

Meanwhile, Sufism Reoriented leaders say it was their idea to ask for the EIR, even though though they believed a smaller environmental study would suffice.

They talked about asking for the EIR in in their March newsletter, a copy of which was shared with me on February 13. In that newsletter, they said they hoped the county "approves our request for an EIR."

After I published the February 26 post, a Sufism Reoriented representative contacted me to say his organization did "not put a distorting spin in our newsletter about who originated the EIR. ... we did indeed initiate the request to the County."

To assure me that this is how the EIR came about, the representative, Steve Sardella, attached a letter, dated February 3. It is addressed to Cross and comes from Marie Cooper, an attorney representing Sufism Reoriented on this project. This letter is also published on Sufism Reoriented's website. Two weeks after the letter was sent, Sardella said, the request for the EIR was approved. Here is the letter: 

Dear Ms. Cross:
I am writing on behalf of Sufism Reoriented, the applicant for the new sanctuary project. We request that the County prepare an EIR for the project even if staff would otherwise prepare a proposed Mitigated Negative Declaration for the Planning Commission’s consideration.


As you know, an EIR must be prepared only when the record contains evidence that there may be unavoidable significant impacts. A Mitigated Negative Declaration is permitted when there is no such evidence. The studies conducted by our consultants have not revealed any unavoidable significant impacts. Experience at the existing sanctuary establishes that the new sanctuary will generate few vehicle trips. Also, the new sanctuary project proposes redevelopment of a developed site in a developed neighborhood. All these factors indicate that a Mitigated Negative Declaration would most likely be appropriate for the project.


However, the new sanctuary has generated controversy among a significant minority of our neighbors, and we want to make sure that all the issues they raise are fully vetted. An EIR would also give the County decision makers more flexibility to weigh and balance evidence and arguments, allowing them to arrive more easily at the best possible decision in this matter.


We understand that preparation of an EIR would involve more time and effort than would preparation of a Mitigated Negative Declaration, and Sufism Reoriented confirms its commitment to pay all reasonable processing costs, including those associated with an EIR. We also understand that the decision regarding what document to prepare lies solely in the County’s hands. We make this request to alert the County to our position, confirm our agreement to pay costs, and explain why an EIR would be appropriate.

Sufism Reoriented responds to concerns about "story poles" and the size and design of their proposed sanctuary

This is a response from Steve Sardella, a spokesman for Sufism Reoriented, regarding the post I did earlier this week on flyers, objecting to the organization's proposed sanctuary, going up around the Saranap neighborhood. As you can read, the flyers raised questions about why Sufism Reoriented won't erect "story poles," wooden structures marking the outlines of their project in order to give the public a visual sense of its height and size. The blue flyers, affixed to telephone poles, specifically said:

"According to Sufism Reoriented, the Sanctuary Building is too large and complex to put up Story Poles…TOO BIG for Story Poles?!?!?!”

Sardella actually send me a longer, thoughtfully written response to several questions I had asked about the project. I'm only publishing his specific response to the story pole issue now, but plan on publishing his response to those other questions as I raise them in future articles.

I was unhappy to read this flyer because it is another example of someone falsely attributing statements to Sufism Reoriented. We never made the statement: “…the Sanctuary Building is too large…too big… to put up Story Poles.” This latest false claim can be added to other bogus statements that some opponents have made to our neighbors, such as saying our building will be “54 feet tall,” we want to create a “national headquarters” in the Saranap, and that we are an Islamic cult.

We have indeed commented on the idea of story poles, but we have said that many architects now value using high quality computer-generated in-scale renderings to provide viewers with more accurate views of how a building will look in its setting. We’ve had these renderings created and we’ve shared them liberally with our neighbors. I’d be happy to walk the property with you and let you hold up these renderings and verify their accuracy for yourself.

I think the people who put up these flyers on telephone poles would be less concerned with how our church will look if they could understand that after the landscaping matures in 5-6 years, they will hardly be able to see it from any perspective. Two thirds of the building’s space will be unseen underground and the church building on the surface will be practically invisible inside a glade of trees.

I would like people to know that we have tried very hard to have our new church blend into the neighborhood. Some who oppose this new church building have particularly focused on the domes in our design. And yet, these domes have nothing to do with our choosing an architectural style we thought would be interesting. Instead, they have everything to do with our beliefs and creating the exalted quality of interior space beneath those domes in which we can practice our faith. They are not elective to us.

Churches of different faiths are located in residential neighborhoods all over Contra Costa County. Many have tall steeples, spires, crosses, and bell towers that are symbolic of their faith, which can be seen from a great distance and from many angles. Many are also located directly on the street, rather than being set back. Urban planners in America recognize the fact that churches, by their very nature, are houses of worship, not residences. The naturalness of congregations designing their churches to reflect their central principles and beliefs is generally accepted. Ours has been designed to reflect our own beliefs.

Many of our neighbors like the design of our new church as evidenced by the large number of signatures they have registered in support at the County. Many have told us they look forward to having the new church here and enjoying the lovely open gardens. These beautiful gardens are intended to convey a sense of peace, refreshment, and inspiration, and we invite your readers to enjoy them as well.

Is Saranap's Sufism Reoriented sanctuary debate heating up again?

Over the past few weeks, I’ve noticed these blue flyers affixed to telephone polls and other signs along Boulevard Way in the Saranap neighborhood. These flyers once again raise questions about the size of the proposed sanctuary to be built by Sufism Reoriented, a Saranap-based religious organization.

“Too big for story poles?!?!?!” ask the flyers, one of which is pictured here.

“According to Sufism Reoriented, the sanctuary building is too large and too complex to put up story poles.”

Okay, what are story poles, what project am I talking about, and who is behind the flyers?

Sufism Reoriented proposes to construct a white, 66,000-square-foot, multi-domed “sanctuary” on a 3.25-acre site wedged mostly amongst single-family homes in this older, residential neighborhood in unincorporated Walnut Creek.

The project has hit a raw nerve in this neighborhood, with longtime residents complaining that such a large, white “spaceship-looking” building (bigger than the White House) would not fit in the character of their semi-rural neighborhood. The address would be on Boulevard Way, and there are apartments and office buildings along one side.

Sufism Reoriented leaders say the building, particularly the domes, was designed to blend in with the surrounding, grass covered hills. They also say it would be eco-friendly, “nestled in a glade of trees,” and, with two-thirds of it tucked underground, it would not be visible to most neighbors.

Opponents claim it would be highly obtrusive and have asked the 350-member religious organization to erect what are called “story poles.” If you’re not in construction, story poles are wooden structures, often built of 2X4s that are erected on the site of a proposed development to give builders, neighbors, government officials a visual indication of its size and visual impact.

Sanctuary opponents say Sufism is refusing to erect the story poles because they don’t want the neighbors and county planners, who are reviewing the plans, to see how massive the sanctuary truly will be. Apparently, a representative of Sufism reoriented said earlier this year that it would be very costly to erect the story poles and that they are an old-fashioned, inefficient way to really judge a project’s size and visual impact.

Sanctuary opponents, leaders of an organization called Save Our Saranap, deny posting the flyers. It’s also possible that the flyers have been up there a while. However, although I don’t live in the Saranap, I still drive, walk, or run through that area on an almost daily basis, and it wasn’t until a couple weeks ago that I noticed these flyers.

I’ve e-mailed a representative of Sufism Reoriented to see if the organization has any comment on the flyers and the story pole issue, but haven’t heard back from him yet. If I do, I’ll pass along what he has to say.

As I reported back in March, many Sufism Reoriented members have made the Saranap neighborhood their home, and have apparently co-existed peacefully with their non-Sufism neighbors for decades. But things started to become tense in the neighborhood, when Sufism Reoriented went public with its sanctuary plans. Friends who live in the neighborhood were telling me stories about being bombarded with aggressive door-to-door visits by Sufism members and pro-sanctuary press releases and expensive newsletters.

Sufism Reoriented says it wants to build a beautiful house of worship for its members, where they can also participate in the organization’s many religious, civic, and arts activities.

It’s not clear whether the appearance of these flyers represent some new rise in tensions over this controversial issue. But I’m told that county planners are finishing up their review of the project, and possibly, by the beginning of the new year, it will go back to the neighbors for further discussion and debate.