DOJ sides with mega church in land dispute with Chatham County leaders

CHATHAM COUNTY, N.C. (WTVD) -- The Department of Justice (DOJ) has sided with a Chatham County mega-church, alleging the Chatham County government unlawfully denied the church's application to rezone parcels of land so the church could build a new place of worship.

The DOJ supports the claim under the Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act (RLUIPA).

Summit Church, a multi-congregational organization based out of Durham, filed a motion for a preliminary injunction, seeking an order requiring the county to approve the church's rezoning request and associated site plan.

According to the DOJ, Summit Church filed a motion for preliminary injunction, seeking an order requiring the County to approve the church's rezoning request and associated site plan. The County moved to dismiss the lawsuit, arguing the zoning decision is a "legislative act" under state law and is therefore not controlled by RLUIPA. The department's statement of interest supports the church's claim that RLUIPA protects against the County's discriminatory zoning decision.

Summit Church-Homestand Heights Baptist Church leaders say they have been worshipping at East Chapel Hill High School for several years and due to its growth, need additional space to meet the religious needs of its congregation.

In its complaint, Summit Church claims that the denial of its rezoning applications by the Board treated the Church on less than equal terms to nonreligious assemblies and imposed an unjustified substantial burden on its religious exercise

The DOJ disagreed and has sent letters to state, county and municipal leaders reminding them of their obligations under the Religious Land Use Act.

"RLUIPA protects the rights of religious groups to exercise their faith free from the precise type of undue government interference exhibited here," said Assistant Attorney General Harmeet K. Dhillon of the Justice Department's Civil Rights Division. "The Civil Rights Division is committed to defending religious liberties as our founders intended and as federal law requires."

What is the RLUIPA Law?

The Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act (RLUIPA) is a federal law that guards individuals and religious institutions from unduly burdensome, unequal, or discriminatory land use regulations. Click on Place to Worship Initiative to learn more about the law.