Residents in the Brighton Parks 55+ community say theyre not against the temple, but they want Bakersfield officials to enforce zoning rules before granting final approval. A newly released fact sheet from the Brighton Parks Ad Hoc Committee flags concerns over the proposed 124foot temple steeple and the potential for bright lighting spilling into nearby homes.Greg Brott is the Chairperson for the Brighton Parks AD Hoc committee, and he says, We are delivering 408 signed letters from the community stating 2 things. Yes, we would love to have the temple south of our community; however, the height and the bright is just so far out of code.Neighbors say the proposed tower would soar to more than twice the citys 60foot height limit for the area and theyre worried the temples lights could blaze too brightly at night.Church leaders counter that the temple would be set about 260 feet from nearby property lines, and they insist its lighting will be carefully engineered to minimize any impact on neighbors.The committee claims the project does not fit with the surrounding neighborhood. They point to a temple project in Yorba Linda, where church leaders reduced the building's height to meet city requirements.Merrill Dibble is the Stake President for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints Stake here in Bakersfield, and he says, Those are common concerns by neighbors of temples built around the country and around the world. Those aren't new. We are glad the neighbors give us feedback. We appreciate that we support the city in performing an extensive environmental study that looked at multiple environmental factors, including lighting and the height of the steeple, and we agree with the city in the report that there will be no negative impacts from those 2 things.Residents are now asking city leaders to lower the steeple height and limit nighttime lighting. The committee is also asking for restrictions on glare and light shining into nearby homes. This is just a small section of folks we have that say 408, please build it, but build it within reason, and there's city codes.. please, Brott said.Both sides say they hope to find a solution that works for the neighborhood and still allows the temple project to move forward.Its hard to compare temples to each other. We will work with the city like we always have, and if they have certain requests that we feel are reasonable, of course were open to finding a solution that works for everyone. Dibble said.A final decision on this matter is still far away. The city will review the letters, and then the planning commission will discuss and vote on the matter. But it'll be the Bakersfield City Council that has the final say.Stay in Touch with Us Anytime, Anywhere: Download Our Free App for Apple and Android Sign Up for Our Daily E-mail Newsletter Like Us on Facebook Follow Us on Instagram Subscribe to Us on YouTube ...read more read less