St. Louis County Assessor Jake Zimmerman and East St. Louis Mayor Alvin Parks have quietly become two of the region's (if not the nation's) most controversial public office holders.
In some people’s eyes, they are just doing their jobs; in other folks’ opinions, they are challenging the First Amendment rights of some religious organizations. I stand with these two gentlemen and—following what will likely be countless lawsuits and appeals—I hope they prevail.
Let’s start with Zimmerman. He is the point man in the battle between the city of Kirkwood, St. Louis County, and Presbyterian Manors, a division of the Presbyterian Church that owns the plush Aberdeen Heights senior living community in Kirkwood.
Presbyterian Manors has argued that Aberdeen Heights should not have to pay property tax, which would come to more than $1.2 million a year. If they are granted the exemption, the city would be providing services while not receiving the tax dollars other residents and businesses pay. The Kirkwood School District would be shortchanged about $700,000 annually.
Full disclosure: I serve on the Kirkwood Schools Foundation board and also superintendent Tom Williams’ ad-hoc committee. Indeed, I am biased on this issue.
As detailed by the Webster-Kirkwood Times and other media outlets, Aberdeen Heights is very expensive and very, very nice. Zimmerman and others aren’t buying the notion that it is a religious not-for-profit operation. He and, just as importantly, the county Board of Equalization don't accept the claim that the facility should receive an exemption just because it covers residential and assisted living expenses when residents can no longer pay. The initial cost to move in can be hundreds of thousands of dollars.
Previously, the county had also rejected an appeal by the Islamic Community Center, which has argued it should not have to pay tax on a nearly five-acre piece of land in south St. Louis County. That was in 2010, and the Missouri State Tax Commission upheld that ruling in March.
A congregation of Bosnian Muslims plans to construct a religious and community center on the parcel. But years have passed (in which no taxes were paid), and there is no timetable for developing the site. If the land has been sitting empty for years, why should the organization not have to pay its tax?
Mayor Parks in East St. Louis is dealing with a municipality that is dangerously close to being insolvent. Simply offering services such as police and fire protection is a struggle. So to help balance the books, churches and not-for-profit organizations are required to pay a $100 registration fee annually for fire inspections. The churches say that's unfair.
I think it’s reasonable to ask a church or not-for-profit to pay a fee for inspections. That should not fall under the no-tax policy that protects these entities. The cost does seem rather high, though.
By the way, according to the website Church Angel, there are scores of churches in East St. Louis. The U.S. Census estimates that the city’s population in 2011 was just more than 27,000 people. Of its residents, 98 percent are black.
The East St. Louis churches and the Islamic Community Center probably do not have the financial wherewithal or popularity to push their cases to the Supreme Court of the United States, should all avenues of escaping taxes and fees be exhausted.
But the Presbyterian Church certainly does, and you best believe the mighty Catholic Church is paying close attention to what is happening in the St. Louis metropolitan area.
Commentary by Alvin Reid
