Park Hills’ Our Lady of Lourdes Church wants to build grotto; Attorney General supports in lawsuit


Attorney General Russell Coleman announced Friday that the Attorney General’s Office is defending the right of a Kenton County church to build an outdoor religious shrine on its property.

Watercolor of proposed Grotto (Website photo)

In a brief issued for a case currently before the Kentucky Supreme Court, General Coleman underscored the fundamental protections of religious practice and stood up for the church’s rights under the Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act (RLUIPA).

“It’s not up to the courts to decide how we exercise our religion in this country,” Coleman stated. “For centuries, Americans have bravely fought and died for the right to practice their faith without substantial burden from the government. We proudly continue that fight today. Our Office stands with the men and women of faith who simply want to exercise their rights.”

In 2021, the Missionaries of St. John the Baptist received approval from the City of Park Hills to build a grotto at Our Lady of Lourdes Church. The simple structure would provide a quiet place for meditation and worship before and after church services.

Neighbors who opposed the shrine brought a lawsuit. While the church won the case at Kenton Circuit Court, when the neighbors appealed, a three-judge panel of the Kentucky Court of Appeals reversed that decision, saying the city board did not have statutory authority to grant the variance, and blocked the construction of the shrine.

The Attorney General is supporting the church’s appeal to allow the building of the shrine to proceed.

In the brief, the Attorney General’s office says, “Respectfully, the Court of Appeals got it wrong. It doesn’t matter how important building the shrine is to Saint John’s religious beliefs. What matters under RLUIPA is whether prohibiting Saint John from building the shrine is a substantial burden on its religious exercise. Of course, it burdens that exercise.”

Kentucky Solicitor General Matt Kuhn, Principal Deputy Solicitor General Jack Heyburn and Assistant Solicitor General Daniel Grabowski filed the brief on behalf of the Commonwealth.

The case has not yet been scheduled for oral arguments before the Supreme Court.


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