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Buddhist open house meant too many visitors for neighbors' comfort By CHRIS BRISTOL ASHLAND -- For the people of Colestin Valley, a traffic jam is what happens when you get stuck behind a slow-moving tractor. And that's they way they like it. With only about 200 residents, the tiny but eclectic community on the southern flanks of Mount Ashland seems insulated from the outside world. After all, there is but one road. So it came as quite a shock one day last month when a seemingly endless convoy of cars descended upon the valley. By the hundreds they came, curious to see Tashi Choling for themselves. "There were so many cars out here, you wouldn't believe it," recalls Colestin rural fire chief Steve Avgeris. "I mean, it was flat-out bumper to bumper." The occasion was an open house for Tashi Choling, a fantastically multicolored Tibetan Buddhist temple situated on a 67-acre retreat near the California border. For the first time since the temple was founded in 1978, local practitioners decided to stage an open house as a way of enlightening people about their spiritual home and their faith. By most accounts, the event was a success. Organizers estimate up to 1,000 people made the drive for a look around the place -- a response that far exceeded expectations. "It was unprecedented," says temple spokesman Nick Doherty. "A lot of people have known about this temple, but it's not like we advertise tours. A lot of people saw it as their first chance to visit." But the event was no nirvana for residents of Colestin (pronounced COLE-steen). And when they read news accounts in which an organizer predicted more was in store, it renewed old fears about the future of the temple and whether the Buddhists plan to expand. In the days following the event, Avgeris says he received a number of complaints about the traffic and the potential for wildfire. "It really did catch us by surprise," he says. "They told us about it (beforehand), but they never told us how many people and how many cars." And it almost certainly violated a 1991 conditional-use permit that restricts the temple to no more than 25 passenger cars a day. The permit was issued by Jackson County after a protracted land-use squabble over plans to build a 12-room retreat center adjacent to the temple. The county said the temple, as a church, could stay on property zoned only for farms, but rejected the retreat as beyond the scope. Earlier this week, a county code compliance officer confirmed that he reminded the Buddhists about the permit. Even though the open house was probably a violation, he said the matter was dropped after practitioners assured him it was a one-time event only. Avgeris says his main concern is the danger of fire -- a very real danger given the valley's southern exposure. In fact, the fire district was formed in direct response to a 1981 blaze that charred almost 600 acres and threatened the watershed. "When you have that many cars, it's a hazardous situation," he says. "They've been really conscientious about (fire), but the law is the law." Doherty, an exporter to China who lives in Ashland, apologized for any misunderstandings. Even though he was not ready to concede the open house violated the temple's permit, he says there is no truth to rumors the temple plans to hold similar events. The temple is always available for smaller tours. "It's not something that's going to happen regularly," he says. "There was a lot of pent-up demand (to see the temple) and it was something done ... so the community could get a sense of who was out there, what was out there. "We're really trying to fit in and work with people out here. Bottom line, we want neighbors to be comfortable." Mail Tribune Copyright � The Mail Tribune 1999, Medford, Oregon USA