Louisiana district judge's ruling upholds board's decision to block old Mandeville church construction

Opponents of a controversial plan to build a grandiose Catholic church in quaint old Mandeville scored a legal victory Friday when a state District judge ruled that the city's zoning board has the authority to block the project. Judge William Crain's decision upholds the Mandeville Zoning Board's denial of a permit to build a $13 million, 16,715-square-foot church across Lafitte Street from the existing Our Lady of the Lake Church.

The ruling marks a major milestone in the long, contentious debate between church supporters and residents and preservationists in the historic lakefront community.

Whether it ends Our Lady of the Lake's push to build a larger place of worship to replace its overcrowded chapel remains to be seen. Sarah McDonald, spokesperson for the Archdiocese of New Orleans, said that Crain's ruling was received by the church Friday and officials are in the early stages of determining what steps will be taken next.

"The (church) parish is working with the archdiocese on deciding how to move forward," she said.

Our Lady of the Lake, located three blocks from Lake Pontchartrain, is the largest Catholic parish in the local archdiocese, with nearly 3,000 registered families in the congregation. On average, about 6,500 people attend weekend Masses at OLL, officials said.

The turmoil began shortly after former OLL pastor John Talamo unveiled plans to build the new $13 million church, with its soaring towers and Gothic revival architecture. Supporters of the project said the existing 465-seat church is undersized , forcing the parish to conduct some weekend Masses in the adjacent Chotin Center, a multipurpose building that houses the OLL gym. The new church was designed to seat 1,028.

The church project was the subject of several heated public hearings where supporters noted the dire need for a larger church and opponents lamented the prospect of a building that would be outsized for the community and would impact traffic and drainage in the area. Critics created a website, Save Old Mandeville, to further their position. They commissioned a poll they said showed the new church did not enjoy widespread support throughout old Mandeville. The church controversy became an issue in some Mandeville municipal elections in the spring.

Supporters argued that the church had been a vital part of the city for 160 years, and the new building would not be a burden on the surrounding community. They said the church met all legal requirements invarious city zoning ordinances. Congregants recited a prayer during each Mass seeking blessings for the church project.

In October 2011, the Zoning Board denied the church's request for a special permit to build its new place of worship. On Nov. 4 of last year, OLL appealed the board's decision , and in April of this year argued before Crain that the church project was in step with all city zoning ordinances and that the board did not have the discretion to deny the permit. Crain, who was subsequently elected to the state's 1st Circuit Court of Appeal in Baton Rouge, took the matter under advisement, setting up this week's decision.

Mandeville City Councilman Ernest Burguieres, who represents old Mandeville and has been critical of the church's construction plans, said the divisive issue "pitted friends-against-friends and families-against-families" in the south Mandeville neighborhood. "I'm glad this dispute is over with. The community can now start to heal from the rifts...," Burguieres said.

Read more:
Louisiana district judge's ruling upholds board's decision to block old Mandeville church construction