A federal judge denied the Chatham County Board of Commissioners’ motion to dismiss a lawsuit brought by The Summit Church and partially granted the church’s request for a preliminary injunction against the county’s decision to deny The Summit’s application to rezone approximately 50 acres of land for a new worship facility.
The ruling by Judge William L. Osteen came during a hearing held June 9 in U.S. Middle District Court that was further outlined by the judge in a 50-page memorandum opinion and order released Friday, June 20.
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The Summit Church had sought a mandatory injunction that would have ordered Chatham County to approve the church’s rezoning request and associated site plan to construct a permanent facility for its nearby Chapel Hill campus that currently meets in a local high school.
Osteen denied The Summit’s request for a mandatory injunction, but he granted the church a prohibitory injunction that rendered the county’s decision to deny the rezoning request “of no force,” according to the written order.
“IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that Defendant Chatham County, North Carolina Board of Commissioners is hereby ENJOINED from denying Plaintiff’s rezoning proposal, pending further order of this court,” Osteen wrote. “IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that the County’s December 16, 2024, denial shall be of no force and effect pending further order of the court.”
Attorneys for The Summit Church filed a lawsuit against the Chatham County Board of Commissioners in February after the board voted unanimously at the Dec. 16, 2024, meeting to deny the church’s rezoning request to construct a permanent meeting site for its Chapel Hill campus.
EDITOR’S NOTE — This story was written by Chad Austin and originally published by the Biblical Recorder.
