Department of Natural Resources v. Board of Trustees of Westminster Church of Detroit

• Decision Date: 04 May 1982
• Docket Number: No. 55440,55440
• Citation: 114 Mich.App. 99,318 N.W.2d 830
• Parties: DEPARTMENT OF NATURAL RESOURCES v. BOARD OF TRUSTEES OF WESTMINSTER CHURCH OF DETROIT. 114 Mich.App. 99, 318 N.W.2d 830, 29 A.L.R.4th 166
• Court: Court of Appeal of Michigan — District of US

Page 830

318 N.W.2d 830

DEPARTMENT OF NATURAL RESOURCES v. BOARD OF TRUSTEES OF WESTMINSTER CHURCH OF DETROIT.

No. 55440.

114 Mich.App. 99, 318 N.W.2d 830, 29 A.L.R.4th 166

Court of Appeals of Michigan.

Submitted Nov. 9, 1981.

Decided March 4, 1982.

Released for Publication May 4, 1982.

[114 MICHAPP 101] Frank J. Kelley, Atty. Gen., Louis J. Caruso, Sol. Gen., and Frank J. Pipp and Russell E. Prins, Asst. Attys. Gen., for plaintiff-appellant.

Gregory E. Snow, Detroit, for defendants-appellees.

Before KELLY, P. J., and HOLBROOK and KAUFMAN, JJ.

PER CURIAM.

Plaintiff, the Department of Natural Resources, appeal a trial court decision dismissing its complaint for possession of land leased by its predecessor some 55 years ago to defendant board of church trustees.

In August, 1925, John Baird, director of the Department of Conservation (DOC), entered into a 50-year lease with defendant church trustees. The church trustees were the corporate body which managed and controlled the property and secular affairs of the Westminster Church of Detroit. The lease was for certain lakefront property in Crawford County which was to be used by the trustees to establish a camp for boys and girls. The lease provided in pertinent part:

"WITNESSETH: That the said party of the first part for and in consideration of the sum of One Dollar ($1.00) to it in hand paid by the party of the second part, the receipt whereof is hereby confessed and acknowledged, has granted, demised and LEASED unto the said party of the second part, and their successors in office, and by these presents does grant, demise and LEASE unto the said party of the second part and their successors, for the period of FIFTY (50) years and from year to year [t]hereafter for such time as the same shall [114 MICHAPP 102] be used for the purposes hereinafter set fourth, the tracts, pieces or parcels of land described as follows, to-wit:

* * *

"[F]or the purpose of establishing and maintaining a Camp for Boys and Girls to be conducted by Westminster Church of Detroit, Michigan.

"TO HAVE AND TO HOLD the said above described land to the sole and only use, benefit and [behalf] of the said Westminster Church of Detroit for the uses herein above set fourth.

* * *

"If at any time more than two years should elapse when the said land shall not be occupied by the lessees for the purposes set fourth, then and in such case the rights conveyed by said lease shall cease and all buildings and permanent structures placed thereon shall become the property of the State and the lands shall revert to the State which shall assume possession of the same without any process at law or otherwise."

Since 1925, the trustees have operated Camp Westminster on the land in question. The avowed purpose of the camp is to develop character, citizenship and physical fitness in the youth that attend the camp. Over the years, the trustees have made substantial investments by constructing buildings and making other improvements on the land. Although the trustees are the governing body of the Westminster Church of Detroit, they have always opened the camp to the public. Between 250 and 400 children attend the camp each year, and since 1948, when records began to be kept, the number of children whose families were members of the church average 38% of the children attending the camp.

In 1972, Reverend Carl Howie of the church, concerned that the original 50-year term was drawing to a close, requested the Attorney General's[114 MICHAPP 103] opinion regarding the construction of the "year to year [t]hereafter" provision of the lease. In a private letter to Reverend Howie, the Attorney General opined that the provision conferred a right of continuing renewal so long as the land was used as a camp for boys and girls. In 1973, the Attorney General reached the same conclusion in a letter to a state legislator.

In May, 1975, plaintiff filed a complaint for possession of the land in question. The complaint alleged that the lease was invalid from its inception because it was a lease by the state to a religious society for an inadequate consideration, but that, if the lease was valid, it was terminable at the will of either party because it was a year-to-year lease. On August 26, 1980, the parties, pursuant to GCR 1963, 111.10, submitted to the trial court an "Agreement on the Lease" setting forth their agreement as to facts and the record to be considered by the court. On December 17, 1980, the trial court issued an opinion in favor of defendants. The court found that the lease was a valid contract between the state and an ecclesiastical corporation. It also found that the year-to-year provision in the lease conferred upon defendant a right of continuing renewal. The court concluded that the lease was enforceable at the option of the lessee and dismissed plaintiff's complaint. Plaintiff appeals the trial court's decision as of right, GCR 1963, 806.1.

I

On appeal, plaintiff claims that the 1925 lease was void ab initio because it violated Const.1908, art. 2, Sec. 3. That constitutional provision states in part:

[114 MICHAPP 104] "No money shall be appropriated or drawn from the treasury for the benefit of any religious sect or society, theological or religious seminary; nor shall property belonging to the state be appropriated for any such purpose."

This same provision appears in Const.1963, art. 1, Sec. 4.

Pursuant to M.C.L. Sec. 450.161; M.S.A. Sec. 21.162, the trustees of a church corporation are empowered to take and hold property. While the constitution forbids the state from appropriating property for a religious purpose, it does not prohibit the state from contracting to lease property to a religious organization for valid consideration. A lease is a conveyance by the owner of an estate to another of a portion of his interest therein for a term...