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The Pleasanton Planning Commission held a minutes-long meeting last week to approve a conditional use permit and design review plan that allows Harvest Valley Church to move into the Valley Business Park.
The church has been temporarily operating out of Rosewood Commons Conference Center after vacating its 40-year-old property at 3200 Hopyard Road in 2024 to make way for a housing project with eight three-story residential buildings.
“I’m excited to see that one come up here,” Planning Commission Chair Brandon Pace said in regard to the church item during the Feb. 25 meeting.
The application was approved unanimously by the commission during its consent calendar portion of the meeting, which are items considered routine in nature and are typically approved by a single motion without much discussion.
In addition to allowing the church to move into the space, the approval allows the church to make renovations for site and building improvements.
Back in February 2024, the Planning Commission at the time first discussed the plans to demolish the church’s longstanding building on Hopyard Road in order for Catalyst Development Partners LLC to develop over 50 housing units. After significant pushback by residents, the City Council eventually approved a modified version of the plan, which now aims to build 55 townhome-style units at the site.
But because of the development, Harvest Valley Church had to scramble to find a new place of worship. At the time, Pastor Derek Meekins said that the church was planning on moving to a new location on Sunol Boulevard, but it ultimately found a temporary home in Rosewood Commons on Rosewood Drive.
Meekins previously explained that the church was forced to close its preschool and church after exhausting its emergency funds during the COVID-19 pandemic. He said he had decided to sell the property where the developer would pay the church in installments, which would cover the church’s debt and offer more money in its pockets.
But now, the church has found a new permanent home in the Valley Business Park at 1252 Quarry Lane, Suite A.
Because the business park was originally zoned for industrial and commercial use, the commission had to vote on the conditional use permit to allow the church to operate at its new location, according to city staff.
According to the staff report, the church will operate daily with its largest gatherings taking place on the weekends — primarily on Sunday.
The church will be open Mondays through Fridays from 6-9 p.m. and will be able to hold up to 50 congregation members, in addition to staff. Occasionally, the church will be allowed to open on Saturdays — for things like weddings, receptions and community gatherings — where up to 100 people will be allowed to gather.
Then, on Sundays, the church will be open from 7 a.m. to 2 p.m. and will allow for up to 200 congregants during each service.
Some of the additional site improvements that the church plans to make at the existing site include new pavement to add parking spaces in the west side of the building, a patio on the east side, new on-site pedestrian walkways, the removal of 13 existing trees and new landscaping.
Inside the building, the church plans on building a vestibule, new lobbies and offices, new classrooms, a mother’s room, a nap room, storage areas and restrooms.
“As proposed and conditioned, staff concludes that the proposed use would be compatible with the surrounding businesses and would not detrimentally affect them,” Pleasanton senior planner Eric Luchini wrote in the staff report. “Conditions of approval have been included to ensure the safety and general welfare of the surrounding area, and the City in general, are maintained.”
