Parties could be nearing agreement in church’s lawsuit against Chauncey project

IOWA CITY - Parties involved in a local church's ongoing lawsuit against Iowa City objecting to the proposed 15-story Chauncey tower could reach a settlement by this weekend.

On Wednesday, the Rev. Lauren Lyon, with Trinity Episcopal Church, said the Iowa City Council on Tuesday ratified their side of a potential settlement over the pending lawsuit.

On Saturday, the church's board will deliberate on the proposed agreement.

'The mediation process was a very positive experience . . . I hope it will conclude with an agreement that pertains to matters that will be of benefit to the entire community,” she said.

In the lawsuit, Trinity argued the city's rezoning the area to make way for the building downtown was contrary to the city's comprehensive land use plan and the city had wrongly rejected the church's objection to the rezoning request.

That lawsuit was dismissed in October, but the church appealed that ruling in November.

Lyon and Marc Moen, the Chauncey's developer, said they could not comment on the terms laid out in the possible settlement.

However, Moen echoed sentiments that the mediation process - which included representatives with the church, Iowa City and the Chauncey - was positive.

'To me the main thing was, I think we all want to be good neighbors,” Moen said. 'There's just so much we can do together.”

Moen said it was a little early to talk about how a settlement would impact the proposed $49 million tower, which has been in the works for more than three years.

'It's really great news for the project,” he added.

That said, Moen acknowledged that there have been costs associated with delays brought on by the Trinity Church lawsuit and a similar lawsuit filed almost three years ago by the citizen group Iowa Coalition Against the Shadow. That group counted now-city council member Rockne Cole as a member.

Moen has estimated delays to the Chauncey - primarily caused by the coalition's lawsuit - have added more than $1 million to the project cost.

'The damage done by that is enormous and we're going to have to figure that out,” he said.

A Court of Appeals of Iowa Judge last month affirmed a Johnson County Judge's April dismissal of the coalition lawsuit, but lawyers with the group said they planned to petition for further review.