Places of worship in Oak Park may now seek special-use approval to convert parts of their buildings into rental units in order to help make ends meet.
At its June 3 meeting, Oak Park’s Village Board unanimously approved a special-use amendment to the village’s zoning code, opening the door for churches to rent out parts of their buildings to either residential or business tenants.
To qualify, the house of worship’s main sanctuary must still be in use by a congregation.
The amendment comes after leaders of a local congregation approached the village, saying that a dip in their congregation’s numbers was making maintaining their building difficult, according to Oak Park Development Services Director Craig Failor.
“This text amendment could bring benefit to or consideration for any place of worship that’s in a similar situation,” Failor said.
While the amendment applies to houses of worship in all residential zones and business districts, it does not give houses of worship the ability to build on additions for the purpose of renting out space.
The amendment aims to help churches remain open in the village even as congregations shrink and building costs rise, according to village staff.
“This initiative is occurring as a result of church leaders seeking ways to repurpose church assets in underutilized buildings,” staff wrote in a report to the board. “The proposed amendments would allow congregations facing challenges of declining membership and deferred maintenance to continue to fund their missions and outreach, and pay for the upkeep of their buildings, while using space that may no longer match the congregations needs. The Place of Worship – Dual Use amendments allow for creative and flexible changes to uses of church structures encouraging their preservation in the village in a reasonable manner.”
The measure didn’t require much discussion prior to the board’s vote.
“I think that’s a new record,” said Village President Vicki Scaman after the board’s quick unanimous vote.