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St.John’s acquires another vacant lot
03/13/2010 10:18 AM by John M
This house ar 1500-02 North 29th Street, sold to St.John’s United Holiness Church of 1507 North 28th Street in December 2009, was demolished in recent weeks. In addition to their church building, St.John’s owns at least 14 other properties in the area — all either vacant lots or in use as surface parking.
St.John’s United Holiness Church (1507 North 28th Street)
St.John’s United Holiness Church is connected to the following properties:
1500-2 North 29th Street
1503 North 28th Street
1505 North 28th Street
1513 North 28th Street
1511 North 28th Street
1515 North 28th Street
1523 North 28th Street
1527 North 28th Street
2800 U Street
2804 U Street
2806 U Street
2810 U Street
2812 U Street
2814 U Street
So, correct me if I’m wrong here, but the way I read this, this particular church is contributing to urban blight with this collection of vacant houses…and they’re not paying taxes on any of their propeties due to their status as a church?
Is there any other conclusion to be drawn?
It’s more subtle than that, as I see it. The church doesn’t own blighted properties: they own parking lots and vacant lots that used to be houses. Addresses that used to be homes of community citizens and residents are now surface parking and empty.
The case of churches acquiring residential lots for parking has taken its toll at 22nd and Venable and along Fairmount Avenue.
I’ve clarified the post above to specify “vacant lots”.
It’d be nice if the city could grant tax exemptions to the actual church building and not to all these satellite properties.
I was under the impression that the city has to be petitioned to grant parking zoning. The church on my block owns the vacant lots on either side of my house and they park on them, but they are not paved. I don’t take any issue with it, but wasn’t sure it was strictly legal. I think with the proper zoning, they are supposed to only use 2/3’s for parking and the other third needs to be landscaped.
Note also that a group of churches on Southside are working to get out of the Storm Water Utility.
Legal question. Is all or any church owned property tax exempt? I thought there were limitations.
JohnM #2 and #5, so if the churches are creating more vacant lots / parking lots, then they are thus creating more run off, so they should pay MORE storm water runoff fees, not LESS. That’s my logic of the moment.
I seriously think churches should be taxed, at least on something other than their actual church building…..echoing others here, but I ought to look at the tax code, I guess…since I’m lazy maybe someone else will do so, otherwise, maybe I’ll do that tomorrow….
#7. Under the ordinance as I understand it, there wouldn’t be much of a change.
e.g. if the footprint of the impervious house is changed to the footprint of an impervious parking lot, the area that the stormwater assessment folks are interested in will probably be pretty constant for a given plot of land.
Actually, yes, ONLY the property with the actual church building or parsonage is exempt from city real estate assessment.
hmm – are there legal requirements for parking lots? Or is it just a zoning issue?
The law only allows a church to be tax exemt for properties that are used for religious purposes. All lots/houses that are vacant or not used are taxed at the normal rate just like everybody else..