Leland Township sued after denying Christian youth group use of privately owned meeting space

Leaders of a Christian youth organization have sued Leland Township after the local government refused to issue a special-use permit for the group to meet in a privately owned building.

James and Elizabeth VanSteenhouse, along with Micah and Kya Cramer, filed the 169-page lawsuit Aug. 10 in the United States District Court for the Western District of Michigan, targeting 21 government officials.

The township planning commission cited zoning restrictions to deny the permit even though its lawyer, Brian Weirda, warned of possible constitutional rights violations and determined that the group did not violate the law based on zoning language.

The lawsuit alleges 13 counts against the township, to the north of Traverse City, including violations of the youth group and property owner’s constitutional rights. It also alleges that the planning commission exceeded local and state zoning laws in not granting the permit.

Jim and Elizabeth VanSteenhouse purchased a building in a C-1 mixed use zoning region of Leelanau County in February 2025, through their company Apollos Properties LLC. They intended to provide a space for a local Youth for Christ chapter to meet for prayer, Bible study and fellowship. Youth for Christ is a national organization founded in 1944 and has local chapters.

Before purchasing the building, according to the lawsuit, the owners met with Tim Cypher, Leland’s zoning administrator, to ensure it was lawful for the group to meet there. The lawsuit states that they were told it would be allowed.

In October 2025, Leland Township told the group it could no longer meet at the location without a special-use permit. The property owners were required to file an application with the planning commission and pay a $300 fee.

Cypher told the owners and youth group that this was a formality and that the township’s planning commission would issue the permit, according to the lawsuit. The application was submitted Oct. 17. The lawsuit states that Cypher told the planning commission that the application submitted for the special-use permit filed by Apollos LLC and Youth for Christ complied with the zoning ordinance.

The planning commission argued that the youth group was not a club but a religious organization and therefore disqualified from using the facility.

During a Nov. 5 hearing to address the application, Robert Parker, Apollos’ legal counsel at the time, argued this was not true. Even if it were true, according to Thor Hearne, the attorney who filed the lawsuit on behalf of Apollos LLC and Youth for Christ, the group had the constitutional right to meet there.

Another hearing on the special-use permit was scheduled for Dec. 3 but had to be rescheduled to a larger location when hundreds of people showed up.

A memorandum was then submitted to the township on Dec. 30 by Hearne, explaining that the zoning ordinance was unconstitutional because it violated the First Amendment rights to assemble, speak, and associate.

The plaintiff’s lawyer is not the only one who argued that it is unconstitutional. Weirda, the planning commission and township attorney said that clubs are permitted under the C-1 ordinance, according to 2024 meeting minutes.

In his legal analysis after a January meeting, Weirda rejected the township’s argument that the space could be used only for commercial or retail activities.

“The township is not permitted to exclude a club from the district because of its religious focus,” Weirda wrote, adding that constitutional rights, specifically the First Amendment, would be violated if the township prevented the group from meeting.

The planning commission, according to Hearne, paid $12,000 to hire another attorney, though it had approval only for a $2,000 expenditure. Weirda still works for the township.

New attorney Tom Grier, according to Hearne, did not appear to contradict Weirda’s conclusion, but he gave the township options on how to handle the conflict.

“The township’s new attorney, Tom Grier, provided the Planning Commission two alternative proposals, one denying and one granting Youth for Christ the right to assemble at the Property,” states the lawsuit.

The planning commission voted 4-1 on April 15 to deny the club’s application to meet on the property.

Since the ruling, Youth for Christ has not met anywhere, citing the risk of legal trouble until a court rules on the lawsuit. The building owners and club worry that they could be fined $500 and face up to 90 days in jail, according to Hearne.

The township’s zoning laws are so prohibitive that the club could only meet in areas zoned for agriculture, the plaintiff’s attorney said, and even then, the township would have to issue a special use permit. Hearne seeks to repeal the zoning law.

The township did not respond to a request for comment.