LAKE BLUFF SET TO MEET WITH JUDGE ABOUT ARMENIAN CHURCH IN MANSION
LINDA BLASER
Lake Forester
July 24 2008
IL
The village of Lake Bluff will meet with a judge for the Illinois
Department of Revenue on July 31 to appeal the state’s decision to
grant a property tax exemption to George Michael, who converted his
lakefront mansion into the Armenian Church of Lake Bluff.
"This initial conference is just to set some scheduling and ground
rules for the proceeding," said Village Attorney Peter Friedman, who
will represent the village. "In between this initial conference and
the ultimate hearing, the village will have the ability to further
investigate the facts underlying the claimed exemption."
>>From the village’s perspective, Michael is operating a church in
an area zoned "country estate residence" without village permission.
At the core, the situation is a zoning issue, according to Village
Manager Drew Irvin.
"There is a process that can authorize a church to operate" in that
area, said Irvin. Michael "has not applied for a special use permit. He
has not received a special use permit."
"This has nothing to do with whether Lake Bluff does or does not
want this church. It’s really a zoning issue for us," said Lake Bluff
Village President Christine Letchinger.
The village fined Michael $115,000 on June 24 for violating zoning
regulations.
"That’s $250 a day for each day of the violation," said Irvin. Michael
operated the church for 460 days.
It is not unusual for a church in Lake Bluff receive a property tax
exemption, Friedman said.
‘Out of the ordinary’ "It is very unusual for a residence that has
been used as a residence for many years to attempt to convert itself
into a church and receive a property tax exemption. That is certainly
out of the ordinary," Friedman said.
The loss of property tax revenue will have the greatest affect on the
local education system, specifically Lake Bluff Elementary School
District 65 and Lake Forest High School District 115. Together,
the schools receive approximately 60 percent of the nearly $80,000
in annual property taxes on the property in the 1900 block of Shore
Acres Drive.
"That’s the price of a teacher," said District 115 Superintendent
Harry Griffith. "Losing a teacher every year for the next five to 10
years is pretty significant."
"We don’t like to lose any revenue because any loss takes away from
our students and that’s unfortunate," said David Vick, superintendent
of District 65.
"Fundamentally, the property tax system is built on trying to create
as much fairness among property tax owners as possible to fund public
education," Griffith said. This situation "raises questions about
fairness among all property taxpayers."
For now, Michael has "suspended the use of the premises for church
services when we first got the notice from the village that they
objected to the use," his attorney Mark Belongia said Tuesday. He
described the suspension as "an agreed accommodation to try and
resolve the dispute."
The $115,000 fine was due July 8, but remains unpaid, Irvin said.
The village received word on June 16 that the Illinois Department of
Revenue issued the non-homestead property tax exemption certificate
on June 12, Irvin said.
Belongia is confident he and Michael will prevail in the hearing.
"The state has already made its decision, a proper decision,"
he said. "There’s no reason why there should be any change in the
state’s granting of an exemption."