3rd Circuit Says RLUIPA Zoning Challenge Is Not Ripe

In Congregation Anshei Roosevelt v. Planning and Zoning Board of the Borough of Roosevelt, (3d Cir. July 22, 2009), the U.S. 3rd Circuit Court of Appeals held that a RLUIPA challenge to a zoning board’s decision was not ripe for review. At issue was whether a synagogue located in Roosevelt, New Jersey, whose occupancy was grandfathered under the relevant zoning ordinances, needed to file an application for a zoning variance when it entered an arrangement for a Yeshiva (a Jewish school) to also operate in its building. The court concluded that the Planning and Zoning Board's decision that the synagogue needed to apply for a variance should not be reviewed until an application for a variance was filed and ruled upon, so that a full record would be available.