TRI In The News
Shelters at Churches Spark Religious Freedom Challenge
From News Leader
Original article available here
WAYNESBORO — An attorney with a civil liberties advocacy group says the city's interpretation of its zoning laws might be violating churches' rights to freely exercise their religious beliefs under the First Amendment.
Meanwhile, city officials say the municipal zoning code was recently updated to address homeless shelters and was devised with state and federal laws in mind.
A coalition of churches, called the Waynesboro Area Refuge Ministry, or WARM, plans to start a shelter program at six church sites. Each church will take turns providing a hot meal and overnight stays for people who need it for one week. The program is modeled after HARTS in Harrisonburg.
The city's zoning code, updated and put into effect Jan. 1, requires churches in certain districts to apply for conditional use permits. Other zoning districts completely prohibit overnight shelters, a restriction that has kept several churches from participating in the shelter program, said Howard Miller, chair of WARM and pastor of Waynesboro Mennonite Church.
In a letter from Charlottesville-based The Rutherford Institute to city attorney Todd Patrick, attorney John Whitehead argues that the city's zoning law permits churches to provide temporary shelter for homeless people as an accessory use to the church.
Accessory use is defined as "that which is a traditional, customary function of churches that is incidental to the churches' primary use of their properties."
Whitehead wrote that providing shelter to homeless people is a function of religious exercise by individuals and families and cites Biblical mandate to provide such service to the needy.
"(Any) actions taken to impede these efforts must be carefully examined under the lens of the First Amendment to the Constitution of the United States, which guarantees individuals and churches the right to exercise their faith," Whitehead wrote.
Assistant City Manager James Shaw said the city's code explicitly outlines what is an accessory use to a church, home or retail business, and that a shelter for the homeless, temporary or not, is not one of those uses. He added the code was devised in keeping with federal law and with what is appropriate for different areas of the city.
He said churches in some districts likely will be able to obtain special use permits without difficulty. The planning commission and City Council must approve the permits.
One of the participating churches, Basic United Methodist, is located in such a district. That church's permit application will be heard at a public hearing Monday night.
Miller said other churches also plan to apply for conditional-use permits.
