The San Juan Capistrano City Council on Tuesday night will consider changing a local law through which a couple were fined $300 for hosting large weekly Bible studies in their home.
Under proposed changes to the municipal code, any similar gathering that draws a neighbor’s complaint would be studied to determine whether it meets the city’s definition of a church. If so, the city would require a conditional use permit.
A church would be defined as a “use provided by a legally constituted religious organization for public and family worship of a deity or deities, together with buildings and uses that are accessory thereto and used for the teaching of religious dogma, accessory social functions and one single-family dwelling for use as a minister or caretaker residence. This definition includes synagogues, temples, mosques and other buildings used for the purposes stated herein.”
If the gathering does not require a permit but has adverse effects on parking, trash or noise, it would be regulated under the city’s existing nuisance laws.
The church definition is based on one adopted in 2010 by the city of Rancho Cucamonga, according to a staff report by Grant Taylor, San Juan Capistrano’s director of development services.
The past six months, the Planning Commission has wrangled with a proposed code amendment after Chuck and Stephanie Fromm filed a claim contesting their fines. The couple held weekly Bible-study sessions that drew up to 50 people, and a neighbor complained. A code-enforcement officer decided the Fromms’ gatherings constituted an organization requiring a conditional use permit and fined them twice.
The trouble arose over the municipal code’s inclusion of the terms “religious, nonprofit or fraternal” organization. Under current city law, any such organization that operates in a residential area must apply for a permit. The requirement can be broadly interpreted to include gatherings large, small, frequent and infrequent, and commissioners called the language “archaic and confusing.”
The Planning Commission decided to recommend striking those terms and instead providing better definitions for what legally constitutes a church.
If the council approves Tuesday, the code amendment would need one more approval before final adoption.
Contact the writer: fshyong@ocregister.com or 949-492-5135
