News
Follow our progress as we work to build a new home for Wat Khmer Kampuchea Krom on Ruby Avenue, San Jose.
San Jose City Council gives go-ahead for temple project / Mar 28 2023
Plans for what will become the largest Buddhist temple in the Bay Area for ethnic Cambodians were approved by San Jose council members, clearing the final hurdle for a $25 million project that has been in the works for more than four years.
Voice of Kampuchea Krom (VOKK) / Facebook >
A Khmer Buddhist Foundation Provides $1 Million in Grants to Digitize and Preserve the Largest Surviving Collection of Cambodian Buddhist Palm Leaf Manuscripts / Feb 9 2022
Rare 500-year-old collection of Buddhist literature on culture, science, medicine, history and religion is made available free to the global community online.
Message of support to local synagogue / Jan 24 2022
A Khmer Buddhist Foundation is pleased to have extended its support to our brothers and sisters at local synagogue, Chabad-Lubavitch of Almaden Valley, which went up in flames in December. “We send our sincere blessings to all those hurting from this senseless tragedy,” said Lyna Lam, founder and executive director of A Khmer Buddhist Foundation, in announcing the organization's intent to help financially. “We all need a safe place to worship and hope we can join together to help this wonderful community recover quickly.” She urges others to support the GoFundMe account that has been organized to support this vital renewal effort.
Cambodia’s Wat Phum Thmei Palm Leaf Library and the Resilience of Buddhist Texts / Nov 18 2021
With a grant from A Khmer Buddhist Foundation, the Buddhist Digital Resource Center (BDRC) launched a project to digitize surviving manuscripts in Cambodia and help preserve irreplaceable artifacts.
San Jose Silicon Valley Business Journal: Lyna Lam wants to build a stronger Khmer Krom community / NOV 13 2020
Temple design update / OCT 19 2020
The Khmer Krom Buddhist community is excited to share design changes we are making as we proceed through the entitlement process for our new Temple in Evergreen. As we update the design, we are addressing the top concerns expressed by neighbors, while preserving the Temple as a place for our members to worship, pray and meditate in a peaceful setting. Our community is grateful for the constructive input from neighbors and the leadership of our District 8 Councilmember, Sylvia Arenas, through this important community process.
The main concern expressed was the underground parking garage. We heard many neighbors say they would support the Temple if the underground parking was eliminated. As a result of this input, we are eliminating the underground parking garage and moving all parking above ground, surrounded by landscaping with trees and lush plants. While we believed that parking underground would have been a good way to reduce the visual impact of parked cars, we understand that our neighbors did not agree.
Another concern we frequently heard was that the overall size of the project was too large. To address this, we are working to reduce the number of buildings and the total square footage by adapting the remaining spaces for multiple uses and making other spaces more compact. The original design would have met the needs of the temple community best, but in our desire to be good neighbors, we will work to accommodate these needs in a smaller collection of spaces.
We appreciate the feedback we’ve received and we look forward to continuing to work with the community throughout the approval process. We are peaceful neighbors and we look forward to being welcomed into the Evergreen neighborhood as we have been welcomed in San Jose since many of us arrived here as refugees nearly 40 years ago.
In community,
The WKK Temple team
Letter from a temple member
Bringing peace and unity to the neighborhood
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
View here (Document attached to be uploaded) >
Letter to neighbors regarding demolition / Mar 13 2020
Demolition Permit / Mar 13 2020
CONDITIONAL USE PERMIT APPLICATION SUBMITTED TO THE CITY OF SAN JOSE / JAN 7 2020
We have officially submitted a CUP application to the City of San Jose for review to the Planning Department. Staff will review the application for completion and will return with comments within a month. We look forward to their feedback and the opportunity to serve our neighbors in Evergreen. The application can be viewed here through our dropbox link (CUP application).
KATHINA (ROBE OFFERING) CEREMONY
November 1-2-3
Wat Khmer Kampuchea Krom TEMPLE FACT SHEET
Conditional Use Permits explained / Mar 11 2019
We are pleased to share some information on the process for a Conditional Use Permit (CUP) application, which will be necessary to ensure that our proposed temple will be harmonious with our community.
The Conditional Use Permit process allows the City to review the proposed use and determine whether the site is appropriate for that type of activity, as well as to place conditions on the use that would enhance the project and reduce any possible negative effects on surrounding properties.
Today’s topic is: What is a Conditional Use Permit?
A conditional use permit, or CUP, is a tool that provides flexibility within a zoning ordinance. It allows for special community uses, such as drive-up businesses, care facilities, or religious establishments to operate within certain zoning districts. Uses such as these are permitted to provide essential services to support our communities. Church and religious assemblies are conditionally allowed in the residential zoning district.
Community meeting / oct 17 2018
The design and community outreach team held a neighborhood workshop session on Wednesday, October 17, 2018 at the Evergreen Islamic Center in San Jose. Fifteen of our invited nearest neighbors were in attendance. We were also pleased to welcome Patrick McGarrity, Chief of Staff for San Jose Councilmember Sylvia Arenas. The workshop provided a high-level project overview, Temple background, and the status of the project’s preliminary application (PRE18-190).