Ministry's lawsuit against city of Bryan continued until June

A federal lawsuit filed by a church in downtown Bryan to prevent the city from fining it $1,000 a day for operating a 24-hour-a-day ministry has been continued until June 18.

Representatives of the city of Bryan and the church, Dad’s Place, spent Monday morning in U.S. District Court in Toledo trying to iron out what issues each side wanted Judge Jack Zouhary to address that day and in the future.

Judge Zouhary directed the lawyers for both sides to meet with their respective clients and identify what they felt needed to be tackled, plus getting their answers to specific questions posed by the judge, including if overnight stays is at the root of the dispute.

“What questions do you want me to address today and down the road?” Judge Zouhary said. “I applaud the church for taking steps to aid the homeless.”

After meeting privately for more than an hour on Monday, representatives from both sides joined the judge in his chambers to discuss a way forward. Additional discussion between the individual parties and their lawyers followed. The parties were unable to reach a compromise, and the entire proceeding was subsequently continued.

The dispute between the church and the city over the ministry’s 24-hour operations initially had both parties in court in January.

Dad’s Place Pastor Chris Avell began receiving pushback in November from city officials about his ministry, which allowed people — many of them unhoused — to enter the church at all hours. Dad’s Place filed a federal lawsuit against the city on Jan. 22.

On Jan. 24, Judge Zouhary entered an order barring the city from enforcing any alleged violations of zoning or fire codes without the approval of the court or without the church’s agreement. He also ordered the city to schedule a conference if the city felt there was an urgent safety issue that needed to be addressed.

The city in February agreed to drop 18 charges centered around zoning and fire code violations, while Dad’s Place agreed to “cease residential operations” and to seek proper building permits.

The most recent suit was filed April 25, the day after Bryan Fire Chief Doug Pool cited the ministry for the lack of an automatic sprinkler system in a sleeping area after an unannounced inspection at 5:30 a.m. the morning prior. The church was also facing a $1,000 a day fine if it didn’t end its 24-hour ministry by May 1.

Jeremy Dys, an attorney with First Liberty Institute, is representing Dad’s Place. According to Mr. Dys, the church had made efforts to address prior issues identified by the city, including updating fire extinguishers and removing certain appliances, however, the church had never been informed of concerns about the sprinkler system.

In its suit, the church asserted the citations violated the terms both parties agreed to in January.

In court Monday, however, Judge Zouhary said there had been a brief teleconference between the various parties and Darrell Clay, U.S. District Court magistrate, on April 25, before the citations were issued.

“Could there have been better communications between counsel? I don’t know,” Judge Zouhary said before he went on to dismiss a request for sanctions against the city for having issued the citations.

The judge emphasized his ruling and the mediation agreement the parties reached in January with Mr. Clay remain in effect.