GREENSBORO, N.C. — Leaders at Westover Church are surprised their congregation has grown from 300 to almost 3,000 worshipers in about 10 years and are building a new 2,700-seat sanctuary to accommodate the increase.

Neighbors are surprised too, but they aren't exactly casting an approving eye on the megachurch they fear is growing too big and affecting their property values.

"When does a church cease to be a church and become a coliseum?" asked Gladys Mingia, whose townhouse will back up to the new sanctuary. She told the News & Record she can't understand how the church is allowed to build a towering four-story building just 12 feet from her property line.

Marty Irwin also complained that the church's growth took her by surprise and threatens the value of her home.

"We figured that they were going to build a regular church," Irwin said. "Now they come in here and build this big building."

The church moved to its present location in 1994 and has experienced steady growth since then.

Westover spokeswoman Dianne Cantley told the newspaper church leaders are surprised by the rapid growth. There are now five services each Sunday and some must watch the service over closed-circuit television in the church's gym.

"We have a lot of people coming and we've got to have room," Cantley said. "Who do you turn away?"

Part of the current building project includes a 125-space satellite parking lot behind a row of homes across Muirs Chapel Road. One resident, Duke Elkins, told the newspaper he plans to sue to stop construction of the lot.

Churches are exempt from city zoning laws, according to the newspaper. Mingia said city leaders didn't conceive how large some churches can become when they allowed them to build in residential areas.

"I think it was meant for a neighborhood church, not one of these Megachurches," she said.

Church leaders have met with many residents individually and are considering design changes to the addition. Cantley said the church cares about the people who are affected by the construction and will try to work with them.

"It is important for us to be a good neighbor," she said. "Greensboro matters to us and our neighbors matter."