John Beckett
05-31-2008, 12:33 PM
Planners deem liquor licenses more 'valuable' than worship
The Planning and Zoning Commission of Yuma, Ariz., denied a use permit to a church because, in part, it worried that the church would cost the city liquor license money.
City staff informed the commission in a report that the church would not be "beneficial to overall economic health" of the area, a condition necessary for granting a conditional use permit (CUP).
Why not?
The staff report cited worries about parking and about lessoned tax revenue, but also warned that an Arizona statute forbidding liquor licenses within 300 feet of a church might prevent certain businesses from moving near the church's proposed new location.
The controversy began when Centro Familiar Cristiano Buenos Nuevas Christian Church, outgrowing its current facility, bought an old JC Penney store that had been mostly vacant for 15 years in Yuma's "Old Town" district.
The church planned to move in, renovate the building, begin worship and initiate community service ministries (http://www.worldnetdaily.com/index.php?fa=PAGE.view&pageId=65770#).
Following a neighborhood meeting about the proposed relocation, Yuma's Senior Planner, Robert Blevins, assured the church that their CUP application was likely to be approved.
The city staff report, however, recommended the zoning commission deny the CUP, and the commission voted 5-0 to block it.
Now attorneys (http://www.worldnetdaily.com/index.php?fa=PAGE.view&pageId=65770#) with the Alliance Defense Fund (http://www.alliancedefensefund.org/) (ADF) and the Center for Arizona Policy (http://www.azpolicy.org/) have initiated a lawsuit to ask a federal court (http://www.worldnetdaily.com/index.php?fa=PAGE.view&pageId=65770#) to step in. The city of Yuma permits other, non-religious groups to assemble without a CUP, says the suit, so requiring only religious organizations meet the requirements of a CUP constitutes discrimination.
"Churches should not be singled out for discrimination by a city's zoning restrictions," said ADF Senior Legal Counsel (http://www.worldnetdaily.com/index.php?fa=PAGE.view&pageId=65770#) Byron Babione. "Prohibiting a church from occupying its own building simply because a city favors non-religious assemblies over religious assemblies is not allowed under the Constitution or federal law."
The Old Town district of Yuma currently is home to a theater, a cinema, an art center, the Yuma County Democratic Party, an Eagles Hall and a Masonic (http://www.worldnetdaily.com/index.php?fa=PAGE.view&pageId=65770#) Lodge – all classified as assemblies, but none of which were required to obtain a CUP.
The pending lawsuit contends that "the city's discrimination has communicated to the public that the church's religious character, mission, and services have little value to the greater community, and are less valuable than comparable secular uses."
"The government cannot treat people with non-religious viewpoints more favorably than people with religious viewpoints," said Center for Arizona Policy attorney Peter Gentala. "The actions of Yuma zoning officials violate the Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act, a federal statute which protects churches from discriminatory zoning laws. The city's 'you don't fit' attitude does not justify treating religious organizations differently than nonreligious groups."
http://www.worldnetdaily.com/index.php?fa=PAGE.view&pageId=65770
The Planning and Zoning Commission of Yuma, Ariz., denied a use permit to a church because, in part, it worried that the church would cost the city liquor license money.
City staff informed the commission in a report that the church would not be "beneficial to overall economic health" of the area, a condition necessary for granting a conditional use permit (CUP).
Why not?
The staff report cited worries about parking and about lessoned tax revenue, but also warned that an Arizona statute forbidding liquor licenses within 300 feet of a church might prevent certain businesses from moving near the church's proposed new location.
The controversy began when Centro Familiar Cristiano Buenos Nuevas Christian Church, outgrowing its current facility, bought an old JC Penney store that had been mostly vacant for 15 years in Yuma's "Old Town" district.
The church planned to move in, renovate the building, begin worship and initiate community service ministries (http://www.worldnetdaily.com/index.php?fa=PAGE.view&pageId=65770#).
Following a neighborhood meeting about the proposed relocation, Yuma's Senior Planner, Robert Blevins, assured the church that their CUP application was likely to be approved.
The city staff report, however, recommended the zoning commission deny the CUP, and the commission voted 5-0 to block it.
Now attorneys (http://www.worldnetdaily.com/index.php?fa=PAGE.view&pageId=65770#) with the Alliance Defense Fund (http://www.alliancedefensefund.org/) (ADF) and the Center for Arizona Policy (http://www.azpolicy.org/) have initiated a lawsuit to ask a federal court (http://www.worldnetdaily.com/index.php?fa=PAGE.view&pageId=65770#) to step in. The city of Yuma permits other, non-religious groups to assemble without a CUP, says the suit, so requiring only religious organizations meet the requirements of a CUP constitutes discrimination.
"Churches should not be singled out for discrimination by a city's zoning restrictions," said ADF Senior Legal Counsel (http://www.worldnetdaily.com/index.php?fa=PAGE.view&pageId=65770#) Byron Babione. "Prohibiting a church from occupying its own building simply because a city favors non-religious assemblies over religious assemblies is not allowed under the Constitution or federal law."
The Old Town district of Yuma currently is home to a theater, a cinema, an art center, the Yuma County Democratic Party, an Eagles Hall and a Masonic (http://www.worldnetdaily.com/index.php?fa=PAGE.view&pageId=65770#) Lodge – all classified as assemblies, but none of which were required to obtain a CUP.
The pending lawsuit contends that "the city's discrimination has communicated to the public that the church's religious character, mission, and services have little value to the greater community, and are less valuable than comparable secular uses."
"The government cannot treat people with non-religious viewpoints more favorably than people with religious viewpoints," said Center for Arizona Policy attorney Peter Gentala. "The actions of Yuma zoning officials violate the Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act, a federal statute which protects churches from discriminatory zoning laws. The city's 'you don't fit' attitude does not justify treating religious organizations differently than nonreligious groups."
http://www.worldnetdaily.com/index.php?fa=PAGE.view&pageId=65770