Members of Our Lady of Perpetual Help Church in Newhall are hoping Santa Clarita officials will approve their plans to more than double the size of their church in order to accommodate its large congregation.  

Currently, about 7,500 families belong to the church which only has enough room to sit about 5,400 people during Sunday services, according to a city staff report.

Church officials want to expand their facility by building a new 21,000 square-foot worship center and adding a 250-space parking lot.

The current church is about 10,000 square feet.

The construction will take place on nearly 9 acres of church-owned land located near the intersection of Lyons Avenue and Arcadia Street, according to the report.

Planning Commissioners will decide whether to approve the church’s building plans at a meeting Tuesday, which comes after nearly two years of planning between the church and city staff.

The construction plans are extensive and will be carried out in two phases.

Adding a new church building will require the demolition of nine homes that the church owns, the removal of 13 oak trees on the building site and the construction of a new bus stop at Lyons Avenue, said Planning Manager Lisa Webber.

Five of the trees being removed will be re-planted at a different area on the building site, she said.

Our Lady of Perpetual Help Church, which is owned by the Roman Catholic Archbishop of Los Angeles, was originally built with the approval of Los Angeles County in the 1950s.