A San Diego Christian church has filed suit against the city, accusing the City Council of violating its constitutional rights, under both the U.S. and California state constitutions, and its rights under federal law by denying it permission to build a new church building, allegedly at the behest of a project opponents in collusion with a city council member who owned property nearby.
According to the complaint, the church has been in existence since 2008 and now has a congregation numbering about 800. The church currently meets in a rented facility under a lease that is scheduled to expire at the end of June. The complaint asserts the church is required to vacate its current facility by the end of 2024.
To accommodate its future growth and ministry plans, the church purchased a 6 acre undeveloped site west of College Avenue, north of Interstate 8 and south of Del Cerro Boulevard. According to the complaint, the site borders a single-family residential development to the east, gas station to the north, a synagogue and residential development to the west and the I-8 freeway to the south.
According to the complaint, the church has sought for six years to develop a plan for the site and win approval from the city to begin building.
The project, however, has experienced opposition from a group of neighbors, according to the complaint, who rejected the findings of a transportation survey and other studies, and the opinion of city staff, that the church project will not bring negative traffic impacts to the area. The opponents allegedly attacked the church and its plan on social media, calling them “religious nuts,” a “cult,” “anti-gay,” a “mega church,” “kool aid drinkers,” “bigots,” “antisemites,” and “false prophets," according to the complaint.
Despite the opposition, the project won a positive recommendation from the city's planning commission, which found the project was likely the best possible use for the site.
However, when the project went before the City Council for approval in January 2024. At the meeting, the project came under attack from a city council member, who lives about a half mile from the site, according to the complaint. The lawsuit notes the council member, Raul Campillo, allegedly did not disclose his ownership interest in the property and in the neighborhood during the city council meeting. However, the complaint asserts Campillo had been working quietly with opponents of the church project for some time before the city council meeting.
According to the complaint, Campillo and opponents prevailed during the meeting, voting down the church plan 6-2. The vote came despite warnings from city staff that rejecting the plan not only went against the recommendation of city staff, but also could violate the federal Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act.
The church asserts the plan denial does violate the RLUIPA and its constitutional rights.
The church is seeking court orders declaring the city violated their rights, and requiring the city to issue the necessary permits to move forward with the project. They are also seeking compensatory damages and attorney fees.
The church is represented by attorneys Daniel P. Dalton, of Dalton & Tomich PLC, of Detroit, Michigan; and Andrew W. Zepeda and Elizabeth Tran, of Lurie Zepeda Schmalz Hogan & Marin, of Los Angeles.