DOJ: Atlantic Beach, NY must treat religious venues same as secular ones

SHOTS Desk · Thu · 22 Oct 2026 · 01:25 · Reported

The Justice Department has reached a settlement with the Village of Atlantic Beach, New York, over allegations that its zoning code violated the Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act (RLUIPA).

The village's ordinance required religious or educational places of assembly to obtain a special exception permit from the Board of Appeals, while nonreligious places of assembly faced no such requirement. The department said that disparity violated RLUIPA's equal terms provision.

The settlement follows a private lawsuit by Chabad of the Beaches, an Orthodox Jewish organization, which alleged the village denied its application to use a vacant commercial property as a religious facility.

Under the agreement, the village must revise its zoning ordinance to allow religious uses as of right in its Residential (A) district, removing the special exception requirement for places of worship. The village must also train officials and employees on RLUIPA requirements and establish a proce

Read it at U.S. Department of JusticeSHOTS Desk