Tree of Life Christian Sch. v. City of Upper Arlington
| Decision Date | 18 April 2014 |
| Docket Number | Case No. 2:11–cv–009. |
| Court | U.S. District Court — Southern District of Ohio |
| Parties | TREE OF LIFE CHRISTIAN SCHOOLS, Plaintiff, v. The CITY OF UPPER ARLINGTON, Defendant. |
Erik W. Stanley, Alliance Defending Freedom, Leawood, KS, Philip Wayne Gerth, Columbus, OH, for Plaintiff.
Mark David Landes, Scyld D. Anderson, Craig Robert Mayton, Isaac Wiles Burkholder & Teetor, LLC, Columbus, OH, Jeanine A. Hummer, City Attorney, Thomas Kenneth Lindsey, First Assistant City Attorney, Upper Arlington, OH, for Defendant.
This matter is before the Court on the parties cross-motions for summary judgment. (See Docs. 79 and 82). Responses have been filed and the motions are now ripe for review. For the reasons that follow, the Court GRANTS Defendant's Motion for Summary Judgment and DENIES Plaintiff's Motion for Summary Judgment.
Plaintiff, Tree of Life Christian Schools (“Plaintiff” or “Tree of Life”), is a private Christian school located in the Columbus, Ohio, metropolitan area serving approximately 660 students, and employing approximately 150 people. Tree of Life is currently scattered across four campuses in different locations of the metropolitan area, including the Northridge campus, Indianola campus, Dublin campus, and Westerville campus.1 (Verified Compl. ¶¶ 1, 25–28, 35–36). Tree of Life operates as a non-profit religious corporation under the laws of the State of Ohio, with a principal place of business at 935 Northridge Road, Columbus, Ohio. (Verified Compl. ¶ 8).
Tree of Life was founded in 1978, when members of the Linden Church of Christ, Beechwold Church of Christ, and Minerva Park Church of Christ collectively established a school in north Columbus.2 Members from these three churches serve on the school board governing Tree of Life. The school was initially known as Linden Christian School and was later renamed Tree of Life. (Verified Compl. ¶¶ 10–12).
The primary purpose of Tree of Life is to assist parents and the Church in educating and nurturing young lives in Christ. Their mission statement reads: (Verified Compl. ¶¶ 16–17). Tree of Life's vision statement states: “As students are led to spiritual, intellectual, social and physical maturity, they become disciples of Jesus Christ, walking in wisdom, obeying His word and serving in His Kingdom.” (Verified Compl. ¶ 18). Tree of Life describes their philosophy of education as “quintessentially and undeniably Christian,” and believes this philosophy “puts the Bible at the center and asks the student to evaluate all he/she studies through the lens of God's Word.” (Verified Compl. ¶ 19). Tree of Life requires all parents who enroll their children to certify that they agree with the mission, philosophy, and vision. Further, all faculty and staff must also sign a statement of faith, and must be active members of a local, “Bible-believing congregation.” (Verified Compl. ¶¶ 21–22).
Tree of Life has limited space in its current buildings for new students. The Indianola and Dublin campuses are located within existing church buildings of sponsoring churches of Tree of Life. However, there are no long-term leases with these churches, and the schools occupy space in the church facilities as at-will tenants. Further, the facilities are located in buildings that are old and in need of substantial upkeep and/or remodeling. The lack of long-term space and scattered campuses has hampered the unity of Tree of Life. (Verified Compl. ¶¶ 29–34, 37–38).
As a result of Tree of Life's growth and success, it began searching in 2006 for property that would allow for expansion of its ministry. For over two years, Tree of Life reviewed more than twenty sites and facilities within Franklin County, and finally found a building and property located at 5000 Arlington Centre Boulevard in Upper Arlington, Ohio (hereinafter “the property”). The property contains an office building that is approximately 254,000 square feet and is centrally located to serve all of Tree of Life's current constituents. The property's size would allow for consolidation of preschool through twelfth grade at one location and to accommodate even more students. Further, the consolidation would allow Tree of Life to minister across all grade levels, reduce staff and student transportation costs, and provide updated facilities. Tree of Life ultimately purchased the property on August 11, 2010. (Verified Compl. ¶¶ 39–50).
Defendant, the City of Upper Arlington, Ohio, (“the City” or “Upper Arlington”), is a public body authorized under the laws of the State of Ohio, and acting under the color of state law. (Verified Compl. ¶ 9). Upper Arlington is a prosperous and highly regarded suburban community, with a notable history of careful development and land use dating back to the 1910s, when brothers King and Ben Thompson first began to develop the primarily residential community with curved streets and plentiful trees. As a now landlocked, nearly fully developed community, the City commissioned a development plan (“the Master Plan”) in 2001 to provide guidance for its land use.
According to the Master Plan, in order for the City to maintain its existing level of facilities and services, and in order to provide for future capital needs, it is critical for the City to enhance its revenues. The revenue generated per acre from commercial use far exceeds the revenue provided by residential use. In order to maximize revenues, the City was directed in the Master Plan to create opportunities for office development that emphasize high-paying jobs. Because Upper Arlington is landlocked and primarily residential, only 4.7% of its useable land area is zoned “Commercial,” and only 1.1 % is in office use. Therefore, full use of existing office space, as well as the development of additional office space, is critical for the City's financial stability. The City's opportunities to expand are limited; therefore, it must maximize its few opportunities for commercial use, or it cannot maintain its level of services for its residents. (Affidavit of Chad Gibson, Senior Planning Officer for Upper Arlington, ¶¶ 3–4).
All land and development in Upper Arlington is regulated by the Upper Arlington Unified Development Ordinance (“the UDO”), which employs “non-cumulative” or “exclusive” zoning. Article 5 of the UDO sets forth the regulations applicable to the use and development of land in Upper Arlington and establishes the zoning districts, including residential, commercial, planned, and miscellaneous.
The largest office building in Upper Arlington is located at 5000 Arlington Centre Boulevard (the “commercial office building”), in the ORC Office and Research District. The commercial office building was previously occupied by AOL/Time Warner, and it generated substantial income tax and property tax revenues for the City. In 2001, it accounted for 29% of the City's income tax revenues. However, operations at the commercial office building declined over the course of recent years. Time Warner ceased operations at this location in 2009. Requiring commercial use of the commercial office building is consistent with the language and purposes of the ORC Office and Research District, as well as the Master Plan. (Affidavit of Catherine Armstrong, Finance Director for Upper Arlington ¶¶ 4–7).
The purpose of the “ORC Office and Research District” is set forth in Section 5.03(A)(6) of the UDO as follows:
A complete list of permitted uses appears in Table 5–C of the UDO. Schools of any type are not permitted in the ORC Office and Research District. (Gibson Aff. ¶¶ 5–7).
Section 5.01(B) of the UDO governs the rules of application. Section 5.01(B)(2) entitled “Permitted Uses” provides:
Only a use designated as a permitted use shall be allowed as a matter of right in a zoning district and any use not so designated shall be prohibited except, when in character with the zoning district, such other additional uses may be added to the permitted uses of the zoning district by an amendment to this UDO (Section 4.04).
Section 5.01(B)(3) entitled “Conditional Uses” states:
A use designated as a conditional use shall be allowed in a zoning district when such conditional use, its location, extent and method of development will not substantially alter the character of the vicinity or unduly interfere with the use of adjacent lots in the manner prescribed for the zoning district. To this end BZAP [Board of Zoning and Planning] shall, in addition to the development standards for the zoning district, set forth such additional requirements as will, in its judgment, render the conditional use compatible with the existing and future use of adjacent lots and the vicinity. Additional standards for conditional uses are listed in Section 6.10.
Rezoning is governed by Section 4.04 of the UDO titled “UDO and Official Zoning Map Amendments” which specifically provides:
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