Brothers Ask U.S. Supreme Court To Overturn Zoning Decision On Religious Grounds

Three brothers who want to build a Christian camp and conference center on a north woods lake not zoned for the use are asking the U.S. Supreme Court to overturn the town’s decision not to allow it.

Art, Wes, and Randall Jaros have filed a petition for a writ of certiorari with the U.S. Supreme Court in connection with the Bible camp development on Squash Lake, after Oneida County and the Town of Woodboro rejected their request for a conditional use permit. Art Jaros says the permit should have been issued, even though the property was not zoned for the use.

“We believe that the county was required to grant us, as a matter of Wisconsin and federal law, the conditional use permit,” Jaros said. “This is a very important Christian mission effort. We feel it’s commanded by our Christian faith, and that’s why we have pursued this to the highest levels of the judiciary in our land.”

That First Amendment argument was rejected by both the 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals and a federal district judge. And the development is opposed by virtually all the other Squash Lake homeowners, according to Denny Thompson, who represents them on the Oneida County board.

“They just don’t feel that that type of a development would be consistent with the rural atmosphere that most of the lake owners enjoy,” Thompson said. “I could actually not find anybody that would be willing to go along with the changes.”

Art Jaros says his neighbors’ fears are unfounded.

“The neighbors should be assured that we have had seasonal second family homes on Squash Lake for decades. We wouldn’t do anything that would impact our own enjoyment of Squash Lake,” Jaros said. “If ours isn’t impacted, neither would the neighbors’ homes be impacted.”

Four of the nine Supreme Court justices would have to accept the case for it to go forward.