ASHLAND — A proposal to allow the National Guard Armory on East Main Street to be used for events until midnight was turned down Tuesday night at the Ashland City Council meeting.

The Oregon Military Department requested a conditional use permit so they could use the armory for a number of events, from weddings and birthday parties to trade shows and concerts.

The proposal was first heard by the Ashland Planning Commission on Sept. 9.

After hearing concerns from community members that the later hours could disturb nearby residents, the commission revised the times to 9 p.m. Sunday through Thursday and 11 p.m. Friday and Saturday. The revision also stated that no more than 12 conditional use activities could occur past 7 p.m. each month.

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The Oregon Military Department appealed the action on Oct. 28. The council upheld the Planning Commission’s findings, but changed the 12 conditional use activities to 8 p.m. each month.

The council requested city staff to look into the definition of what is a community event compared to what is a commercial event. Some council members felt there was not a clear distinction.

The armory is located on the corner of East Main and Wightman streets, on the northern edge of the Southern Oregon University campus. The current zoning allows for a variety of uses including academics, recreational and theatrical functions because the armory is located within the SOU campus zoning area.

It has been used as both an armory and intermittently as a community center since its completion in 1988. The armory has been used for community functions that are comparable to what is currently being proposed, military department officials said.

Col. Michael Caldwell, deputy director of the Oregon Military Department, said afterward that the department would look at the possibility of appealing the decision. The military department has the option of appealing to the state Land use Board of Appeals (LUBA).

Nearby residents of the armory voiced their objections to the appeal.

Johanna Fisher, president of the Mill Pond Homeowners Association, said she was disappointed that the military department appealed after the Planning Commission passed what she felt was a fair compromise.

Fisher expressed concerns the later hours would cause more noise and wake up nearby residents.

"You have to respect the people who live close by," she said.

To Fisher, the military department was showing "little respect," to her neighbors.

Caldwell told the council the department found the current conditions to be "overly restrictive."

The events that would be at the armory would be more family oriented affairs like a 50th wedding anniversary or a birthday party for a teenage girl.

"We’re not in the business of running a nightclub," he said.

The department has had little to no problems with noise and other complaints from other armory locations across the state, including residential properties, Caldwell said.

With later hours, the military department hoped they could increase revenues.