A local religious group filed a lawsuit against the village of Johnsburg.
A local religious group filed a lawsuit against the village of Johnsburg.
After being denied a permit hearing and a special use permit a local church has filed a lawsuit against the village of Johnsburg, according to Northwest Herald.
The Light House Church of McHenry filed the 66-page lawsuit in the U.S .District Court in Rockford on March 12. In the documents, the village was accused of infringing on Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Personal Act, the Illinois Religious Freedom Restoration Act and First Amendment rights.
The church is seeking monetary damages and also an injunction barring the village from enforcing its new zoning code that would deny the church permissible use on its property, according to the Northwest Herald.
Johnsburg Village Administrator Claudette Sofiakis told Northwest Herald via email, “We are in receipt of the litigation and are disappointed that the church chose to pursue this matter in court rather than through the regular hearing process before the Planning and Zoning Commission.”
The church first applied for development on the property on June 24.
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