What’s Next in Leland's Youth for Christ Battle?

A delayed appeals process, a lawsuit alleging constitutional violations, and an error in said lawsuit that a local township board candidate claims could constitute libel: These are a few of the elements at play in an increasingly messy battle between Leland Township and the Youth for Christ (YFC) branch trying to set up shop there.

The seeds of the debate date back to late last year, when the Leland Township Planning Commission first began considering a special use permit application from Apollos Properties LLC to open a youth Christian clubhouse at 110 North Lake Street in downtown Leland. Apollos owns that building and is seeking the permit for its tenant, Leland LightHouse, which is a branch of the multi-national YFC movement. The planning commission ultimately voted in April to deny the permit.

Apollos Properties has since appealed the decision, and the township’s Zoning Board of Appeals (ZBA) was slated to begin deliberations on the matter at a public hearing scheduled for July 30. But the township was forced to cancel that meeting after the resignation of one-time ZBA member Lauren Cypher left the board without a quorum to vote on the YFC appeal. Cypher had to abdicate her ZBA responsibilities to take on the role of interim Leelanau County administrator.

Following a special township board meeting late last month, the ZBA now has a full complement of five members: Chair Kathy Dawkins, Vice-Chair Jim Carpenter, and planning commission representative Brian Fenlon, along with recently-appointed members Mary Linguar and Lisa Psenka. Fenlon is not eligible to vote on the YFC matter, as he already cast a vote on the special use permit at the planning commission level.

The township also appointed two alternates to the ZBA – Tony Borden and Lynn Dunn – though Dunn has since resigned.

With a full ZBA in place, Leland Township Supervisor Clint Mitchell says the process of rescheduling the July 30 public hearing is “moving forward.”

“Our zoning administrator, Sara Schroeder, is working with the school to secure a date,” Mitchell says of the public hearing, referring to Leland Public School. While Leland Township government meetings typically take place at the local library, the mass public interest in the matter has required larger meeting spaces.

As the appeal process rolls forward, Leland Township is also now facing a lawsuit, which Apollos Properties and Leland LightHouse filed earlier this month. The suit claims the township and its officers violated the plaintiffs’ constitutional religious rights by denying the permit, and seeks a preliminary injunction rendering the planning commission decision unenforceable.

“I can’t comment on the lawsuit,” Mitchell tells The Ticker.

Planning Commission Chair Lee Cory, meanwhile, pushes back against how the suit characterizes the permitting decision. The planning commission’s denial, she says, came down to zoning, and to the question of “whether YFC is the type of club” that could be permitted in the village commercial (C-1) zone where 110 North Lake Street is located.

“In its deliberations, the planning commission never discussed religion, churches, or religious institutions, nor did it discuss constitutional issues because they were not applicable,” Cory says.

The YFC lawsuit also has the potential to beget a totally separate lawsuit, stemming from an error in the initial 169-page filing. Stacey Brugeman, a journalist running for Leland Township trustee this fall, issued a press release two days after the suit was filed, seeking to correct “inaccurate personal information” included in the legal complaint.

According to the press release, the original complaint “erroneously claims that Brugeman sent an email to Youth for Christ” from an email address that doesn’t belong to her. The email, sent by a differently-spelled Stacy with the handle “ilovethepistons32,” accused YFC of “trying to indoctrinate children” and proclaimed, “NOBODY WANTS YOU IN LELAND.”

“Stacy Brugeman apparently loves the Pistons but hates Christians,” the lawsuit quips in response to the email.

“Not only is this not my email address, but these sentiments do not reflect my views,” Brugeman said in her press release, noting she is a “baptized Christian” and has spent time with Apollos Properties owners Jim and Liz VanSteenhouse and Leland LightHouse pastors Micah and Kya Cramer “with the hopes of working collaboratively to find a location that wasn’t so concerning to the small-business owners of Leland’s unique tourism-driven economy.” The press release adds that Brugeman “has heard from numerous citizens who have expressed concern that they are also misquoted or misrepresented in the 169-page complaint.”

In an email to The Ticker, Brugeman said she has been advised by “certain lawyers” that the erroneous claims made about her in the complaint could constitute libel. Asked whether she plans on pursuing any sort of action against Apollos, YFC, or their attorneys, Brugeman says, “I have advisors currently discussing that question.”

True North Law, the law firm behind the lawsuit, has since corrected the complaint with the court, and the copy of the suit accessible on the True North website no longer references Brugeman. The rest of the section regarding the ilovethepistons32 email is still included in the document.

The Ticker emailed Thor Hearne, founding partner of True North Law and head lawyer for the plaintiffs in the YFC lawsuit, asking for comment on Brugeman’s press release. Kent Wood of Borealis Strategic, a locally-based consulting firm, responded, explaining that his business is “helping [True North] manage media requests concerning the litigation...”

Wood acknowledged the situation with Brugeman, and noted that True North “took her concern seriously and promptly filed an amended complaint removing the attribution” when notified of the error. But Wood pushed back against the notion that other local residents had been “misquoted or misrepresented” in the lawsuit, writing in his email to The Ticker that “the other quotes from those opposing Youth for Christ club…were taken directly from public social media posts and statements made in official transcripts of public hearings.”

Wood did not respond directly to Brugeman’s suggestion that the misattribution could constitute libel.

Correction: An earlier version of this article erroneously stated that the upcoming ZBA appeal meetings for Youth for Christ would take place in Northport. They will actually occur at Leland Public School.