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the Washington court's analysis of
<br />its own constitution does not nec-
<br />essarily comport with other court
<br />decisions involving free exercise
<br />claims. Note, for example, in Hayes
<br />v. Fowler, -473 S.E.2d 442 (N.C.
<br />App. 1996), (reported below), the
<br />North Carolina Court of Appeals
<br />rejected a comparable argument,
<br />advanced by the City of Pinehurst,
<br />that all property owned by religious
<br />organizations, including communi-
<br />ty centers, must be deemed permis-
<br />sible uses under a zoning ordinance
<br />by virtue of the Free Exercise
<br />Clause of the First Amendment to
<br />the U.S. Constitution.
<br />[Michael De Grasse, Esq. of Walla
<br />Walla represented the appellants,
<br />Frank Munns, et. al. Timothy Don-
<br />aldson, Esq. of Walla Walla and
<br />Michael Geraghty, Esq. of Spokane
<br />represented Robert C. Martin, De-
<br />velopment Services Manager of the
<br />City of Walla Walla, the City of
<br />Walla Walla, and the Catholic Bish-
<br />op of Spokane. The National Trust
<br />for Historic Preservation, Washing-,
<br />ton, D.C., and the Washington
<br />Trust for Historic Preservation,
<br />Seattle, WA, represented by Law-
<br />rence Watters, Esq. of White Salm-
<br />on, and Elizabeth S. Merritt, Esq.
<br />and Laura S. Nelson, Esq., National
<br />Trust for Historic Preservation,
<br />Washington, D.C., participated as
<br />amicus curiae.]
<br />//y' ;yam/ ^/��-/�-(`} '//�• � y�y� (/��,� � /�.�,• ry`
<br />Pennsylvania Supreme Court Upholds Denial
<br />of Permit to Demolish Historic Building
<br />The Supreme Court of
<br />Pennsylvania has upheld the
<br />decision of the City of
<br />Williamsport denying its per-
<br />mission to demolish a four-
<br />story Victorian building used
<br />as a home for the elderly.
<br />Adhering to its recent decision
<br />in Pittsburgh Historic Review
<br />Commission v. Weinberg, 676
<br />A.2d 207 (Pa. 1996)[15 PLR
<br />1086 (May 1996)], the high
<br />court ruled in this case that
<br />the owner had failed to estab-
<br />lish that the City's action
<br />resulted in an unlawful taking
<br />where it testified that the
<br />building had not been offered
<br />for sale since 1989. In Wein-
<br />berg, a case also involving a
<br />challenge to the denial of per-
<br />mission to demolish a historic
<br />building, the Pennsylvania
<br />Supreme court determined
<br />that a taking had not oc-
<br />curred, in part, because the
<br />owners had failed to demon-
<br />strate that it would be "im-
<br />practicable or impossible to
<br />sell their property."
<br />The Pennsylvania Supreme
<br />Court also determined that
<br />the Commonwealth's enabling
<br />law for historic preservation
<br />and the Williamsport Historic
<br />District ordinance were not
<br />unconstitutionally vague.
<br />Among other things, the court
<br />determined that the laws con-
<br />tained the "requisite degree of
<br />specificity" to avoid arbitrary
<br />or discriminatory enforce-
<br />ment." (Park Home v. City of
<br />Williamsport, 680 A.2d 835
<br />(Pa. 1996).)
<br />This case involves a challenge
<br />to the City of Williams -
<br />port's denial of an applica-
<br />tion to demolish a historic struc-
<br />ture known as the "Park Home."
<br />The building, a four-story, brick,
<br />Victorian hotel, was first opened to
<br />the public in the 1860s. It was con-
<br />verted into a licensed personal care
<br />boarding facility for elderly women
<br />in 1940, and has since been operat-
<br />ed as a home for the aged. Al-
<br />though two of the building's top
<br />floors were removed in 1938, the
<br />building otherwise retains its origi-
<br />nal integrity.
<br />The Park Home is located in
<br />the Williamsport Historic District,
<br />a locally designated historic dis-
<br />trict. It is also listed on the Nation-
<br />al Register of Historic Places.
<br />The building is owned by the
<br />Park Home, a "non-profit corpora-
<br />tion engaged in the business of
<br />maintaining a personal care home
<br />for elderly women in Williams-
<br />port." The owner would like to
<br />demolish the building to construct
<br />a larger facility, and accordingly
<br />
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