Ohio City Refiles Charges Against Pastor for Zoning Code Violations

A pastor in Bryan, Ohio, has been charged with zoning code violations for a second time for running a “Rest and Refresh” ministry that supports the homeless, including a space to cook food, shower, and sleep. “The city argues the church's 24-hour ministry is in fact just a residential homeless shelter, which is not allowed at the commercially zoned property,” reports Christian Britschgi in Reason’s Rent Free newsletter.

The pastor of Dad’s Place, Chris Avvell, was first charged back in January with 18 criminal counts  for similar zoning and fire code violations. “In response to those charges, Dad's Place filed a federal lawsuit against the city, arguing that its sheltering of people in the church is part of its religious mission and therefore protected by the First Amendment and federal law that safeguards religious land uses from zoning restrictions,” Britschgi writes. A judge then mediated an agreement in which the city dropped charges and held off enforcement actions and Dad’s Place agreed to cease residential operations and fix all fire code violations.

The Dad Place’s lawyer told Reason that they removed the stove and installed sprinklers, but a city inspection found a person still sleeping in the church and police have been called to the property 51 times over the past year. A hearing for the latest criminal charges is scheduled for sometime this month, according to Britschgi.