A religious battle brewing

Deirdre Newman

When God said “Let there be light,” was he referring to outdoor

lighting for religious broadcasting?

That’s one of the questions Trinity Broadcast Network and its

neighbors are wrestling with over the network’s outdoor TV tapings.

Problems between the network and nearby residents came to a head

on Feb. 24 when neighbors accused the Christian center of flouting

the city permit process and causing a public nuisance with its lights

and music.

Responding to neighbors’ complaints, the Planning Commission

prohibited the network from broadcasting outside until it could

review the center’s original permit.

The controversy illustrates the difficulty of interpreting federal

religious land-use laws and calls into question the center’s

assertion that broadcasting outside is a religious right.

TV TAPINGS EVERYONE

CAN SEE

The Trinity Broadcasting Network started in 1973 in Santa Ana. In

1996, the international headquarters, with an indoor broadcasting

facility, was built in Costa Mesa.

The disputed outdoor TV taping was not included as part of the

original permit. Such shows require a special event permit every

time.

Still, soon after moving in, the network started broadcasting

outdoors and did so annually about 25 to 30 times a year, said John

Casoria, general counsel for the center.

Casoria, who began representing the center two years ago, said he

believed the network had a special event permit for a specific period

of time, but acknowledged he wasn’t totally sure.

Broadcasting outside generally involves four cameras, a small

video monitor, five light stands that are 6 to 8 feet tall, and four

taller permanent light stands some 20 feet in height. On-camera

guests and performers use microphones. Loudspeakers and public

address systems are not used.

The network said it broadcasts outside in the evenings during the

Christmas season to capture the festivity of the holiday, which

includes its display of 1 million lights, and during the daylight

hours and dusk to capitalize on the gorgeous California weather,

replete with stunning sunsets. The network’s international audience

responds favorably to images of sunny California, Casoria said.

“The response is the same that the Rose Parade gets on New Year’s

Day,” Casoria said.

And it only has to use lighting during the winter months because

there is enough natural light for the outdoor services during the

rest of the year, Casoria added.

NEIGHBORS COME COMPLAINING

Almost as soon as the network began broadcasting outside,

neighbors -- who live as close as 10 to 15 feet from the center --

began complaining, according to testimony from the Feb. 24 Planning

Commission meeting.

Diane Dorrien, who moved into a home on Encore Court with her

husband in 1996, is one neighbor who is fed up, accusing Trinity of

egregiously exceeding its original indoor broadcasting permit.

“If it had stated on their application to do business that their

plans were to display 1 million lights, with outdoor musical driving

tours, tour buses, outdoor broadcasting, erratic late hours and the

use of noisy heavy lifts late into the night, we would have never

considered purchasing our retirement home [in the area],” Dorrien

said.

Other neighbors listed complaints with the music, including Vance

Ito, who lives on Tara with his wife and twin boys.

“Activities like [outdoor broadcasting] often wake up my wife and

twins, especially vibrations form the music,” Ito said.

Ito was one of many neighbors to ask the network for a

comprehensive plan of how it will comply with city permits before it

is allowed to broadcast outside again.

THE CITY RESPONDS

Despite a slew of complaints, city officials did not become aware

of a problem until January 1999, said Mel Lee, associate planner. At

that point, the city fired off a letter to the network explaining

that they needed another permit if they were conducting outdoor

broadcasting on a frequent basis.

The network responded, claiming that since they were a church,

they did not have to comply, Lee said, so the city reiterated the

need for a permit.

The center waited until late 2002 to apply for the permit, to the

chagrin of its neighbors.

The delay caused some residents to question why the city did not

crack down on the network sooner.

“Who in the department is responsible for making sure the

[original] permit is complied with?” resident Mariann Chappell asked.

“They get one thing, and nobody makes them stick to it. Whoever it is

is not doing their job.”

Sandy Benson, the city’s chief code enforcement officer, said the

problem was not brought to her attention until a few months ago.

After the network applied for the new permit, planning

commissioners, staff and some neighbors attended two outdoor

broadcasts. Staff found that the broadcast speakers were not audible

more than 50 feet away.

WHAT ARE THE RELIGIOUS RIGHTS?

When the Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act was

passed by the federal government in 2000, the network began using

that as its foundation for religious freedom. The bill states that

governing bodies can’t impose land-use regulations that impose a

significant burden on the religious exercise of a person, a group or

an organization unless there is a compelling government interest and

any limits are the “least restrictive means.”

The network contends that broadcasting outdoors is part of its

religious rights under this act.

“We believe that we have the right to conduct our services in the

way we choose to conduct them as long as it doesn’t negatively impact

in a substantial way the neighborhood,” Casoria said. “It’s clear

from the findings of the staff report and of all the commissioners

that were there and observed it themselves, that there was little, if

any, impact on the neighborhood as far as the services were

concerned.”

But some neighbors scoff at the notion that broadcasting outdoors

is imperative to the center’s religious freedom.

“These activities can be done inside,” Chappell said. “Otherwise,

it’s about turning our neighborhood into a side show. This is not

Hollywood. Their activities are not conducive to the harmonious

environment of the neighborhood.”

TRINITY’S RESPONSE

Trinity is interested in cooperating with the city, Casoria said,

and has suspended outdoor broadcasting until the Planning Commission

considers both its request for a permit to tape outdoors frequently

and its original permit on March 24.

Casoria said the network already has a building management plan

and has already responded to some of the neighbors’ complaints.

“It’s our feeling that a lot of the concerns are ancient history

that people continue to raise and they’re really not issues right

now.”

But he added that the network is reviewing that plan to see if

there’s anything else it can do to assuage their concerns.

* DEIRDRE NEWMAN covers Costa Mesa and may be reached at (949)

574-4221 or by e-mail at [email protected].