Mandeville panel denies Catholic Church's appeal
By on February 19, 2013
Before a standing room crowd that included several area Catholic priests, the Mandeville Planning and Zoning Commission on Tuesday night denied an appeal by Our Lady of the Lake Church that sought to have its revised plan for a new place of worship accepted by the city. The commission's unanimous vote signaled another setback in OLL's long struggle to build a new church in Old Mandeville.
The appeal stems from a decision by the city's planning department in late December to not accept the Catholic church's second set of plans for a new church on Lafitte Street, across from OLL's existing place of worship. The church's original plan was disallowed by the city's zoning commission, a decision that prompted legal action. After a ruling by 22nd Judicial District Court Judge Will Crain essentially upheld the commission's decision to disallow the church project, OLL attorneys appealed to the First Circuit Court of Appeal, where the case is now pending.
Meanwhile, in December the church submitted new construction plans to the city
for a church with fewer seats than what was originally outlined in the proposal that is being appealed before the First Circuit. The latest plan keeps the same basic design, architectural style and amount of square footage as the original proposal. But the new plan has 850-900 seats compared to the 1,028 seats in the original plan.
Kidd said last month that under the advice of legal counsel the revised plan would not move forward through the city's planning process because of the pending appeal before the First Circuit.
Arguing before the commission Tuesday night, OLL attorney Joe Chautin said the city had no legal support for its decision to not accept the church's new application. He said the application was complete and that there are no provisions that allow the city to refuse acceptance of an application due to ongoing litigation with the applicant.
And, Chautin pointed out that the city actually accepted the application, stamped the application "received" on Dec. 7 and distributed it to the zoning board. On Dec. 10, the city cashed the church's application check. "Why would you cash the check for an application that wasn't to be accepted?" he asked.
Chautin said the church heard nothing for 19 days until Dec. 26, when it received a letter from Planning Director Louisette Kidd saying the city was refusing to accept the application. In the interim, Chautin said the church decided to appeal the original ruling by Crain to the First Circuit.
"It leaves us -- the applicant -- in the position of being denied due process," he said.
City Attorney Edward Deano argued that under the code of civil procedure, when there exists two pending unresolved cases, the latter is dismissed. He said the second application was premature and had the city accepted it, a legal nightmare might have ensued. "A community shouldn't have to endure more than one conflict at a time," he said, later adding "Nobody likes this dispute."
Commission Chairman Nixon Adams admitted that the panel doesn't usually find itself tangled in such complicated legal matters. Member Dennis Thomas then said, "It would be foolish for us to go against the advice of our legal counsel."
With a roll call vote, all six commission members voted to deny the appeal. Immediately after, a parishioner in the audience blurted out "Shame on you!"
The church project has been controversial since it was announced in the spring of 2010. Opponents fear the new Gothic Revival church would cause drainage, traffic and parking problems in the lakefront community and would not fit in with surrounding buildings. Supporters said the existing 465-seat church is way too small to accommodate crowds that attend popular weekend Masses and for some school functions. For some Masses, OLL is forced to use a multi-purpose building that houses a gymnasium, where those church goers who are able to do so kneel on the basketball court while praying.
Meanwhile, in December the church submitted new construction plans to the city
for a church with fewer seats than what was originally outlined in the proposal that is being appealed before the First Circuit. The latest plan keeps the same basic design, architectural style and amount of square footage as the original proposal. But the new plan has 850-900 seats compared to the 1,028 seats in the original plan.
Kidd said last month that under the advice of legal counsel the revised plan would not move forward through the city's planning process because of the pending appeal before the First Circuit.
Arguing before the commission Tuesday night, OLL attorney Joe Chautin said the city had no legal support for its decision to not accept the church's new application. He said the application was complete and that there are no provisions that allow the city to refuse acceptance of an application due to ongoing litigation with the applicant.
And, Chautin pointed out that the city actually accepted the application, stamped the application "received" on Dec. 7 and distributed it to the zoning board. On Dec. 10, the city cashed the church's application check. "Why would you cash the check for an application that wasn't to be accepted?" he asked.
Chautin said the church heard nothing for 19 days until Dec. 26, when it received a letter from Planning Director Louisette Kidd saying the city was refusing to accept the application. In the interim, Chautin said the church decided to appeal the original ruling by Crain to the First Circuit.
"It leaves us -- the applicant -- in the position of being denied due process," he said.
City Attorney Edward Deano argued that under the code of civil procedure, when there exists two pending unresolved cases, the latter is dismissed. He said the second application was premature and had the city accepted it, a legal nightmare might have ensued. "A community shouldn't have to endure more than one conflict at a time," he said, later adding "Nobody likes this dispute."
Commission Chairman Nixon Adams admitted that the panel doesn't usually find itself tangled in such complicated legal matters. Member Dennis Thomas then said, "It would be foolish for us to go against the advice of our legal counsel."
With a roll call vote, all six commission members voted to deny the appeal. Immediately after, a parishioner in the audience blurted out "Shame on you!"
The church project has been controversial since it was announced in the spring of 2010. Opponents fear the new Gothic Revival church would cause drainage, traffic and parking problems in the lakefront community and would not fit in with surrounding buildings. Supporters said the existing 465-seat church is way too small to accommodate crowds that attend popular weekend Masses and for some school functions. For some Masses, OLL is forced to use a multi-purpose building that houses a gymnasium, where those church goers who are able to do so kneel on the basketball court while praying.
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