Megachurch prompted Pierce County city to examine its code. But it’s back to square one
A mayoral veto and questions over legality have left Milton’s code on churches right where it was seven months ago: nonexistent.
The Milton City Council voted on April 4 to uphold Mayor Shanna Styron-Sherrell’s veto of its previous approval of a code revision for churches.
The council passed the ordinance 5-1 on March 21. The bill limited the size of religious institutions to 40,000 square feet in single-family residential zones and added definitions for preschools and schools. Council members said it was important to put some rules on religious institutions in place and make changes as needed in future.
Over the past three years, some Milton residents have been fighting plans for a megachurch. The city accepted an application for a 92,000-square-foot church in 2019, but some said a church that large is too big for a town of 9,000. The 20-acre development plans have sparked a city effort to place size restrictions on future projects.
The bill approved in March placed size restrictions only on religious institutions.
People who testified at the April council meeting said the ordinance was discriminatory against churches.
Milton resident Susan Stevenson told the council the law was unconstitutional and would negatively impact the community.
“If the church is reaching and serving the community and more people are coming, that is a good thing. It puts an undue burden on them when you tell them they can’t continue in their mission to serve the community because they can’t expand,” she told the council. “In fact, the larger they are the more people and resources they have to serve the community.”
Before the veto was upheld by council members, some shared their reasons for reversed votes.
Council member Phil Linden said there were legal problems on restricting church sizes, even though city staff assured the council of its legality.
“We thought our product was correct, and airtight, and that was the expectation that council had in making that vote,” he said. “Unfortunately, upon higher legal review at our attorney’s office, they said there’s some real problems with this, and the council recognizes that and is making adjustments.”
Council member Steve Whitaker said the council never would have voted on a bill with dubious legality.
“I started thinking about just how much time had already been spent on drafting that ordinance, and how much time those people had spent,” he said in the April 4 council meeting. “They’re just not not spending resources well and so we have to endeavor to spend the resources that come from the citizens the way they should be.”
Council member Bruce White said upholding the mayor’s veto allowed for the ordinance to be revised in the city planning commission.
“It allows it to be addressed at the planning commission and have the changes be made that could potentially bring the community a little closer together and have an ordinance that people could be more agreeable to and is more fair,” White said.
The mayor told The News Tribune that there is no determined date to bring back the bill to the council.
Milton decided to amend its development code after plans for a controversial 2,000-seat church were approved through an arbitration hearing. The hearing examiner determined that Milton’s code did not limit the size of a church in a residential zone.
The Salvation Slavic Baptist Church’s proposal includes a 92,000-square-foot church, a 7,500-square-foot gym, a 26-student classroom and 546 parking stalls.
Any changes to Milton’s size restriction on churches would not impact the Salvation Slavic Baptist Church application because it was approved by city staff before potential changes.
The city also paused all development application approvals in a six-month moratorium, but it expired in March. Styron-Sherrell said the city has not decided whether to renew its pause.
Members of the Faith Family Church spoke out against the bill on April 4, saying it restricted and targeted churches. The lead pastor Greg Parsons wrote a letter to the city, saying the proposed legislation hindered Faith Family Church’s ability to serve the community.
The 40,000-square-foot limit would prevent the 37,882-square foot church from expanding its sanctuary or adding classroom space.
“This would force us to consider another place to relocate our congregation which would be a mutual loss for the City of Milton, the residents of Milton, and the partnership that the FFC has worked hard to intentionally build with the City of Milton for 83 years,” Parsons’ letter said.
The Salvation Slavic Baptist Church’s application has had repercussions across the city.
The former Milton Public Works Director Nick Afzali resigned in July over the proposal, saying it was not “compatible” with his values. Four of the city’s seven council members have written letters or testified against the development.
Milton residents have filed an appeal to the hearing examiner’s decision.
Others, including Faith Family Church, have supported the church.
“I welcome the Salvation Slavic Baptist Church and look forward to how they will add value to this flourishing city,” Parsons’ letter said.
