Posted on 03/24/2006 6:10:33 PM PST by Coleus
Florida County Wants to Force Churches to Stay Small
Commissioners seek to amend zoning laws to ensure new churches have limited pews.
Pastors and concerned citizens in Palm Beach County , Fla. , are protesting as both unrealistic and unconstitutional a proposed amendment to zoning laws that would limit the size of future church-building projects. County officials maintain residents in some communities have complained about the noise and traffic associated with church expansion. The only way to solve the problem, they maintain, is to keep churches small.
Palm Beach County commissioners have requested that the Planning and Zoning Department draft an amendment to the land development code that would severely limit the size of any future church to a scale based on the density of the neighborhood population. Steve Stewart, senior pastor of Church in the Farms — a conservative Southern Baptist congregation — was one of many who spoke at a public meeting on the matter this week.
"We strongly encouraged them to find better ways to accomplish the same thing," he said. "If they wanted to accomplish some traffic congestion issues, some better traffic accommodations, you can do that with a slightly different code." Current zoning is divided into three tiers: low-density, medium-density and high-density population areas. Under the proposal, a church in a high-density area could cover 75,000 square feet and have 750 seats, while a medium-density area could have 50,000 square feet and 500 seats. Buildings in low-density areas would be limited 25,000 square feet with just 250 seats.
"That 250 seats means everywhere (in the building)," Stewart explained. "If you have a fellowship hall with 100 seats, you can only put 150 in the auditorium." Churches, he said, would be discouraged from buying property in low-density areas because they couldn't develop it. "If this is happening in Palm Beach County , it could be happening in other quickly developing counties throughout various states," Stewart said. "We can't let this become a legal precedent — if this became a precedent, my word, what it could do."
At the public meeting, he asked planners to consider what would happen if a church was a highly effective at ministry. "What if we deliver relevant sermons, we have great worship, we have great children's and youth programs, we have great addiction therapy — we have great ministry, and people drive over from other neighborhoods?" he asked. "And here was their response: 'Well, they can go to church in their own neighborhood.' " Proponents of the amendment say they simply want churches to fit the size and look of their neighborhoods and want to avoid traffic problems every Sunday morning.
"We are totally sympathetic to that," Stewart said. "We understand that we have a responsibility in a county to beautify it and to keep the problems to a minimum. Not one pastor I know would argue that. We have a responsibility to be good neighbors. "But at the same time we have a responsibility to our communities, and if a church happens to be effective at ministry, they are going to attract a crowd."
The proposal doesn't just affect Christian churches, either.
"This affects synagogues, mosques, every house of worship," Stewart said. "They are trying to say this is for all nonprofit assembly, but interestingly it is not for schools or anything commercial. In other words, it doesn't apply to anything they would get tax income from."
TAKE ACTION
If you are a resident of Palm Beach County , please write the county commissioners and urge them not to amend zoning laws to restrict church size. For contact information, visit the CitizenLink Action Center.
1st amendment. Seems to me, but strangling the size of a church, a government could indeed persecute a religion.
Another thinly veiled attempt to rid the country of our freedom of religion. Despicable.
Florida's out of control. Putting the best face on it, I can only surmise that the entrenched Cracker Mafia is stronger even than the president's brother.
"Click Here to e-mail them all, they should know the free republic is watching them."
Uh, why?
At what point do the neighbors have the right to say "no" to a church?
- When they build a 1000-person building?
- When they build a 1000-student school?
- When they start a restaraunt in their church?
- When they build a 1000-unit retirement home?
- When they build a 1000-unit apartment complex?
You see, I've seen churchs expand and expand, oblivious to the local neighbors. They claim it is their First Amendment right to build the school, retirement home, and apartment complex.
I can't wait until some church builds a casino to help them with their annual Vegas night (or around here, Vegas weekend).
How about building a NASCAR track on church property? Isn't that their First Amendment right?
Obviously, organized religion is indeed regulated by some laws. We don't allow human sacrifice, or for that matter, uninspected public fund-raising dinners. Why is it unreasonable for the public to ask churches to build in areas that support the traffic?
You cannot condemn an entire state based on the actions of a few. FL is no more guilty than most other states on this topic. I have spent the last 20 years of my life here and I am here to say that religion is still strong in this state.
"1st amendment. Seems to me, but strangling the size of a church, a government could indeed persecute a religion."
It's not strangling a religion. It's asking a mega-church to build in an area that will support the traffic, noise, etc.
Would you feel the same if the local mosque would build a 1000-person building at the end of your street? Would you support their right to have a big building, AND broadcast the calls to prayer via loudspeaker?
I can see your point; however, I see this more as an anti-conservative move. I think many of the churches being built and expanded are Christian and evangelical whose pews are filled with politically conservative people.
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/keyword?k=palmbeach
Today, churches aren't even allowed to ring church bells on Sunday. Which was traditional. At least around here.
"I can see your point; however, I see this more as an anti-conservative move. I think many of the churches being built and expanded are Christian and evangelical whose pews are filled with politically conservative people. "
It could be. After all, Palm Beach Co is indeed a hotbed of liberalism. It also could be that the are is heavily Jewish, and evangelical, fundamentalist and charismatic churches are equally as unwanted in that light.
However, I'd make the same restrictions on new synagognes and mosques. As I pointed out (all of those were true stories) churches have abused the First Amendment protections and been oblivious to neighbor's concerns.
This is beneath contempt - how dare the govt limit a church to 250 - thats less than 12 pews on each side of the aisle.
LUDICROUS!
Try to get a grip. Palm Beach has always been under liberal control. This is nothing new. It is one of the last little corners of liberalism in this state.
They have a long history of this, so it should not surprise anyone.
If you will pay a little more attention to what's happening in Florida, you will see that the liberals are losing at every point in the process.
I suspect that this has been occasioned by the success of
Christ Fellowship where a former football coach has built an ever expanding church. Isn't the issue of Sunday traffic bogus? Who else is out on Sunday morning?
"Today, churches aren't even allowed to ring church bells on Sunday. Which was traditional. At least around here."
That makes one of my points exactly. Churches everywhere are already subject to various regulations. Therefore, to say that any regulations are a violation of First Amendment is a bogus argument.
Locally, we have a church that seeks to build a bunch of apartments in an area that isn't zoned for multi-family dwellings, namely, next to the church. The church is trying to pull First Amendment rights to get their way. AT what point do you say "no" to a church construction project?
I live near four churches that could be considered no less than monstrous. I have never heard any noise from these churches, even on Sunday. I'm more concerned with a municipality saying to a church that what size it can be allowed to grow.
"Isn't the issue of Sunday traffic bogus?"
Nope.
I've seen cases where a fast-growing church finally had to hire off-duty cops to patrol the traffic, and busses to shuttle people from remote parking lots.
"I'm more concerned with a municipality saying to a church that what size it can be allowed to grow."
Never confuse a "church" with the building that houses it. The "church," after all, is the people.
The church can grow all it wants. The building that houses it should be constrained by some sort of sensitivity to the concerns of local neighbors.
I do suspect that some church in WPB County violated that sensitivity rule, and now the local gov't is seeking to make sure that it doesn't happen again. Abuse freedom, and you tend to lose freedom....
They don't know what they are talking about,they just want to run there mouth. I live just around the corner where they are trying to build one of these very large buildings;not gonna happen.
What concerns?
That actual individual Christians might be living amongst and around Palm Beach, might actually own property, and may freely practice their Christian religious beliefs in Palm Beach, Florida, USA?
That concern?
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