06-27-2012 Council Minutes - Laserfiche WebLink

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MINUTES CITY COUNCIL JUNE 27, 2012 The Planner noted that the City's Code allows churches in the Semi- Public and Public Zoning Districts, but not in the commercial or industrial districts. The Planner stated that the problem with RLUIPA is that there have been no 8th District Court of Appeals Decisions that help guide cities in these issues. The Planner reported that there are a few theories for how to address the issue. One is to create a Code that allows churches in any zoning district where public assembly is allowed. Another would be to take the same approach that the City has taken with regard to adult uses by providing a reasonable amount of land where churches are allowed. Another approach would be to define distinctions between churches and commercial activities that have an assembly component. And yet another would be to allow churches in more than just the Public Districts. The Planner noted that how liable the City might be to challenges is unknown because there are no court decisions that can be used as a guide. Keis noted that there had been a church that proposed locating in the former Knox building same years ago. The Planner noted that the church did not challenge the City's ordinance limiting their use to the Public and Semi- Public Districts. Blesener pointed out that a charter school had proposed locating in an industrial property a few years ago. The Planner noted that charter schools are not covered by this same law; however, there is some discussion that religious school may try to use the RLUIPA law. Blesener noted the issue of assembly as was discussed in St. Anthony. The Planner indicated that the church was arguing that their assembly was no different than a movie theater assembly. The Planner noted there are differences in that assembly at a church would occur during non- business hours, the church usage could have an impact on economic development plans a city may have in place, etc. The Planner felt it would be appropriate for the City to review its definitions and make some distinctions relative to church assembly and business assembly. Blesener noted the City's current definition of assembly in the industrial districts deals with assembly from a manufacturing standpoint. The Planner agreed that this should be made clear in the City's definitions. The Planner noted that another issue for cities is that churches have tax - exempt status, and cities then lose tax revenue from the property. He also reported that the City of Wayzata researched the amount of land in the metro area that is used by churches and that amount was 1.4% of total land area. The Planner noted that Little Canada zoning allows for churches on a significantly greater percentage of land than the 1.4 %. 4