CHICAGO — Immanuel Baptist Church, Chicago, has filed a federal lawsuit over the city’s enforcement of a zoning ordinance that won’t allow the congregation to purchase its building near the University of Illinois-Chicago campus.
The church and the law firm representing them, Mauck & Baker, contend that the ordinance is in conflict with the federal Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act (RLUIPA) by requiring stricter parking standards for religious assemblies than for other organizations.
Immanuel Baptist has met in its current location since 2011. The church was set to close on the purchase of the building in summer 2016 but the lender would not close on the sale without confirmation from the city.
Immanuel Baptist’s space at 1443 W. Roosevelt Road had been rented by another church previously. Churches are a permitted use in the zoning and the city’s building department gave Immanuel an occupancy permit in 2011. City officials assured Pastor Nathan Carter the sale wouldn’t be blocked despite the church’s use of street parking.
However, the sale was blocked and the church’s ensuing lawsuit, filed in February, was a “last resort,” Carter said. “We’ve been courteous and kind throughout the process and not adversarial, seeking to bend over backwards to meet their demands. We have our alderman’s support.” (BP)
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