U.S. | Mon Nov 28, 2016 | 3:36pm EST

Port Jervis, NY settles U.S. lawsuit over worship zoning law

By Jonathan Stempel | NEW YORK

The city of Port Jervis, New York agreed to repeal a downtown ban on places of worship to settle a U.S. government lawsuit claiming that it discriminated against a church that had contracted to buy property near the site of a planned brewpub.

A five-year consent decree signed last week resolves claims that Port Jervis violated the religious rights of the Goodwill Evangelical Presbyterian Church by adopting Local Law No. 7 of 2015 last December.

According to the U.S. Department of Justice, the law forced the rescission of an August 2015 contract for the church to buy property near where city officials, including Mayor Kelly Decker, hoped a microbrewery or gastropub could be opened.

The state's Alcoholic Beverage Control Law prohibits liquor licenses for locations within 200 feet of schools, churches, synagogues and other places of worship.

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The decree resolves claims that Port Jervis violated with the federal Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act of 2000. A copy was filed with the federal court in White Plains, New York.

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