RLUIPA article

[Rick Duncan]

I have a question about RLUIPA. Suppose a devout
Christian (perhaps a follower of St. Francis) decides
that he would like to open his *home* to the poor and
provide shelter and food (and the Gospel of Salvation)
to the homeless. He begins to operate a soup kitchen
and shelter from his home. Assume that both zoning
laws and covenants in his chain of title restrict use
of this property to single family residential uses
only.

The zoning law is clearly a "land use regulation"
covered by RLUIPA. But what about the restrictive
covenant running with the land? Is that a land use
regulation within the meaning of RLUIPA?

Sect. 2000cc-5 (5) says  "land use regulation" means
"a zoning or landmarking law, or the application of
such a law, that limits or restricts a claimant's use
or development of land...." Is the body of law that
allows deed restrictions to run with the land and to
be enforced against remote transferees who were not
parties to the restrictive covenant a "land use
regulation" under RLUIPA? In light of the rule
requiring a broad construction of RLUIPA, I would
conclude that enorcement of covenants against remote
parties is covered by RLUIPA. Am I wrong?

Cheers, Rick Duncan

--- "Eric W. Treene" <etreene at BECKETFUND.ORG> wrote:
> I would like to recommend to religionlaw subscribers
> an article that was
> just published by Becket Fund attorneys Roman
> Storzer and Anthony Picarello
> entitled "The Religious Land Use and
> Institutionalized Persons Act of 2000:
> A Constitutional Response to Unconstitutional Zoning
> Practices", 9 George
> Mason L. Rev. 929 (Summer 2001).
>
>
> Eric W. Treene
> The Becket Fund for Religious Liberty
> 1350 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Suite 605
> Washington, D.C. 20036
> (202) 955-0095
> etreene at becketfund.org
> www.becketfund.org


=====
"Do you not think an angel rides in the whirlwind and directs the storm."
    --President George W. Bush (quoting John Page)

"When the Round Table is broken every man must follow Galahad or Mordred; middle things are gone."  -C.S. Lewis

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