123 IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT CIVIL LIBERTIES FOR URBAN BELIEVERS, ET AL., V. CITY OF CHICAGO AND STATE OF ILLINOIS. AFFIDAVIT OF LIVING WORD MINISTRIES I, Anthony Earl, being sworn upon my oath, state that I am the pastor of Living Word Ministries, and that I have personal knowledge of the facts stated herein and am competent to testify thereto: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. Living Word Ministries is an Illinois not-for-profit corporation incorporated in 1989. The church began meeting in 1989 at Clark Middle School, 5101 W. Harrison, Chicago. Meeting together for worship, communion, teaching, and other observances is integral to the exercise of the beliefs of Living Word Ministries. Currently, between 150-200 people attend services on Sunday mornings. We still rent space from Clark Middle School; our services are held in the auditorium, with Sunday School, the nursery, and youth ministries taking place in various classrooms. The Our congregation is almost entirely African-American. Meeting at the school has had many drawbacks. The equipment for each service needs to be set up and torn down, a process which takes eight to ten people an hour and a half every time. We have a nursery, sound equipment, a book table, a coffee hour, and a youth ministry which require someone in the congregation to store equipment in their home, transport the Exhibit A-8 6. 7. 9. 10. 11. 12. equipment to the church, and then set it up. As well as being inconvenient and time consuming for volunteer members, this process requires a lot of attention and organization by the staff. We need to use our limited energy and time to do the basic setup for the church, rather than in serving God in our neighborhood. On Wednesday evenings, we have Bible School and a midweek service. In order to be out of the school on time, we need to start Bible School at 6:00 p.m.. Because we start so early, many students are unable to attend and receive the benefit of intensive Bible teaching. If we had our own building, we could be more flexible in our scheduling. If we need to use the school for meetings or events which would last for less than four hours, we must pay $300 for a four hour rental because four hours is the minimum rental for the space we use. We hold our church board meetings at a local hotel at a cost of $280 per meeting. Many church members have expressed frustration with the amount of time they are required to commit to the most basic tasks of setting up the church, and endure considerable inconvenience in order to store the church's equipment in their homes. Some have left because of this frustration or because they are used to worshipping in a building that "looks like a church. When people leave the church, it directly affects the church's income and indirectly affects the ability of the church to minister to its members and its neighborhood. We are also outgrowing the school auditorium. If we remain there, we will have to begin holding two services, which is extra work for the staff and hinders the feeling of community in the church. We want to relocate the church east of where we now meet, preferably near the University of Illinois, because God has called us to build a congregation from a variety of racial and economic backgrounds. If we are located too far west, we will not be able to attract white, hispanic or middle class members. We also want to fulfill God's vision for Israel in the inner city: "And they that shall be of thee shall build the old waste places: thou shalt raise up the foundations of many generations; and thou shalt be called, The repairer of the breach, The restorer of paths to dwell in." Isaiah 58:12 Because of the problems with our rented space and because of our goal to be a diverse congregation, we began looking for property to buy in 1992. In 1993, we located a building at 1218 W. Adams which would have been ideal for our needs. However, it was and is zoned M1-3, and we were informed by Pastor Theodore Wilkinson, who was interested in similar property, and by others that the city is not willing to rezone Exhibit A-8 13. property so that it can be used as a church. Therefore, we did not make an offer on the property. We were ready, willing and able to buy that property but for the zoning. Our ministry would have been greatly enhanced if we could have bought it. Currently, we are looking for a vacant lot so that we can build our own church building. For the last two years, I have kept a list of all the properties on the market on the west side. I have personally driven to most of them to see if they would be suitable for our needs, and have checked their zoning. As of the date of this affidavit, I have been unable to find one property between Lake Avenue on the north, Roosevelt on the south, the lakefront on the east and Homan Avenue on the west which is available and zoned for church use. Anthony Earl Subscribed and sworn to before me this 33 day of September, 1994. p:clublvgw.aff boom Notary Public OFFICIAL SEAL KAREN HOGENBOOM NOTARY PUBLIC STATE VE it L'NO:S Exhibit A-8 Rev. Jim Queen Page 2 6. 7. 8. 9. required. The church usually experiences stress from financial strain and uncertainty. Members often misunderstand the law and may lessen giving, feeling their leaders have tried to do something "illegal" if the permit is denied. If the permit is denied, the congregation often suffers great disappointment and must start over in its property search. The pastor's leadership ability may also be called into question. The pastor, of course, is under considerable pressure not to preach on sin in city government since the Alderman and the administration can negatively impact the expansion plans of the congregation. Finally, churches are severely discriminated against in this process. Following are non-religious assembly uses which are freely allowed (no permit required) in various commercial and business districts: As you can readily see, churches are a less intensive land use than many of the permitted uses. The only essential difference between churches and the permitted uses is the content of the meetings (prayer instead of cheering a sports team; preaching instead of eulogies; hymn singing instead of discussion of union matters). The Chicago Zoning Ordinance contemplates that churches should locate in the residential areas and does not require permits there. However, this "alternative" is unsatisfactory for several reasons: 1. 2. The residential areas in Chicago are largely built up and already subdivided into small lots; Groups meeting in a home usually do not have adequate parking to meet the zoning requirements once they grow beyond 25; 3. Even when land can be found, new construction of a church building and |