The Jefferson City Council will vote today whether to ban churches from the storefronts around the town’s central square.Parking requirements and building codes have kept pastors from setting up houses of worship in Jefferson storefronts so far.
However, with a $600,000 streetscape project in the works and hopes to expand Jefferson’s downtown dining options with several outdoor dining areas, city council members are worried churches could keep restaurants that want to serve alcohol out of the town’s new real estate.
At least one local church leader feels the ban is putting the town’s desire for restaurant-fueled tax revenue above Jefferson’s spiritual well-being.
The proposed amendment to Jefferson’s zoning standards would prohibit churches, temples, synagogues and other houses of worship from operating on land covered by the city’s Central Business District zoning designation.