Source: Gwinnett Daily Post
LAWRENCEVILLE - A Hindu sect whose first attempt to build a temple near Lilburn was deemed too ornate for neighbors can begin clearing the land for a temple on Beaver Ruin Road.
The Swaminarayan temple will be a 24,000-square-foot domed building with marble, the project’s manager said. Architectural plans have not yet been submitted to the county, but J.R. Darji said he would like to begin construction on the project in April and hopes to finish its first phase by November.
Kathy Holland, the director of the county’s development division, said the group received permission to grade, put in utilities and do other work on the site.
“They can do everything except build the building,” she said.
Members of the sect had first tried to build a temple on 4 acres at Lawrenceville Highway and Braden Drive, but that request was rejected in June after county commissioners said it would be too intense a use for the land and was not in character with the surrounding area.
The group had asked commissioners to allow the building to be constructed from marble, not the brick and glass that was required. They had also requested a permit to allow spires on the temple’s domes.