In light of heavy community opposition, Luther Seminary announced Monday it canceled plans to relocate Ramsey County’s 64-bed overnight emergency shelter from downtown St. Paul to its Stub Hall dormitory in St. Anthony Park.

“After receiving feedback from its neighbors, Luther Seminary has decided to cease its negotiations with Ramsey County,” read an announcement issued by the seminary. “Stub Hall will remain vacant as the Seminary continues its plans to sell the property.”

City and county officials, as well as shelter managers with nonprofit Model Cities, had planned a community outreach meeting at Luther Seminary on Tuesday evening. That meeting has been canceled, as has the county’s three-year lease, which was poised to take effect as soon as July 1.

The county, with the blessing of the city mayor’s office and other officials, had planned 64 beds to be used as their new emergency “Safe Space” shelter for homeless people removed from Metro Transit cars and other spaces late at night, with the expectation they would leave the premises each morning, likely through a shuttle arrangement. The county has operated Safe Space in a downtown government building on Kellogg Boulevard in various capacities since 2017, and with Model Cities as a partner since 2019.

From 2022: After working her regular overnight shift at a convenience store off Interstate 94, Sonya Apple sat down in a downtown St. Paul stairwell and cried.

Through a previous lease with Ramsey County, Stub Hall’s Hendon Avenue dormitory had housed homeless women and couples from December 2020 to June 2022, at a time the numbers of unsheltered homeless were soaring downtown, in part because shelters were limiting occupancy and many coach-hoppers were no longer welcome to stay with friends and family.

Some neighbors who had initially been supportive of the 2020-2022 leasing arrangement said that the situation deteriorated with time, as loitering men came to check on their girlfriends and other signs of vagrancy, littering and drug use escalated. Stub Hall has been vacant since June 30, 2022.

St. Anthony Park residents opposed to the new three-year lease, including a land use attorney, questioned why more outreach had not taken place before finalizing the new shelter arrangement, which was poised to take effect this summer. Officials with the St. Anthony Park Community Council told residents they had been unaware of the county’s plans until they were presented to them as final. Residents also questioned the lack of services available for the homeless on the western edges of the city, so far from downtown.

Land-use rules questioned

Attorneys and others familiar with the city’s efforts to allow homeless shelters and other public-facing services at churches and religious institutions questioned whether the county was abiding by the city’s religious accessory use zoning codes, which since 2022 have limited overnight shelters on church grounds to 25 people without a conditional use permit.

While part of Luther Seminary, the Stub Hall dormitory sits on a separate lot from the chapel, raising a potential legal question as to whether it qualifies as church grounds.

“The county approached Luther Seminary earlier this year about the possibility of leasing Stub Hall a second time due to the closure of the Government Center East building at 160 E. Kellogg Blvd,” reads the seminary’s announcement. “The City of St. Paul and Ramsey County determined such an emergency overnight shelter was an allowable use for Stub Hall based on federal law pertaining to land owned by religious organizations.”

City officials had said federal law — the Religious Land Use And Institutionalized Persons Act, or RLUIPA — was on the county’s side, as it awards wide latitude to churches and other religious establishments to operate free from discrimination in zoning and other municipal land-use laws.

In an interview last week, St. Paul Deputy Mayor Jaime Tincher recalled the drawn-out legal battle with the First Lutheran Church in Dayton’s Bluff, which hosted the Listening House day shelter and sued the city to protect the shelter’s right to operate under the conditions, capacity and hours it saw fit. A federal lawsuit ended with a legal settlement in 2019, after some two years of costly court action.

In the case of Luther Seminary, “the city’s position is RLUIPA applies,” Tincher said. “The settlement with First Lutheran provided a lot of direction for the city in how to approach these situations.”

“We’ve been really intentional about figuring out how to provide for that need in a way that is good for our community as a whole,” she added. “We’ve added a lot of (homeless) response teams. We’ve added a lot of staff that has experience in this space, because we want to meet that need in our community in a way that is really responsible.”

Tuesday meeting canceled

As Tuesday’s now-canceled community town hall approached, it became clear the public notification process would come under as much scrutiny as the shelter itself.

“As a gospel-centered community, we felt this opportunity to meet a need in our region aligned with our values,” said Heidi Droegemueller, vice president for seminary relations, quoted in the announcement. “At the same time, our primary mission is theological education. While we are grateful for the welcome extended by our St. Anthony Park neighbors to shelter residents during the pandemic, it has become clear in recent days that moving forward with Safe Space Shelter is not a constructive path for the seminary or the neighborhood at this time. We remain grateful for the commitment and dedication of Ramsey County’s Department of Housing Instability and Model Cities as they work diligently to solve our community’s housing crisis.”

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City Limits rounds up the latest housing and land use-related events, public hearings and affordable housing lotteries that are ending soon.

Welcome to City Limits’ NYC Housing Calendar, a weekly feature where we round up the latest housing and land use-related events and hearings, as well as upcoming affordable housing lotteries that are ending soon.

Know of an event we should include in next week’s calendar? Email us.

Upcoming Housing and Land Use-Related Events:

Tuesday, May 21 at 8:15 a.m.: NYU’s Furman Center hosts “By the Numbers: The Use of Housing Choice Vouchers in NYC,” featuring a panel discussing and networking session. More here.

Tuesday, May 21 at 11 a.m.: The NYC Council’s Subcommittee on Landmarks, Public Sitings and Dispositions will meet on several landmarks applications, including the Tremont Branch of the NYPL in the Bronx. More here.

Tuesday, May 21 at 12 p.m.: The New York State Senate’s Cities 1 committee will meet on several bills related to building owners, including one to establish free legal services for certain small property owners and another to establish a property tax amnesty program. More here.

Tuesday, May 21 at 12 p.m.: The New York State Assembly’s housing committee will meet on several bills. More here.

Wednesday, May 22 at 11 a.m.: The NYC Council’s Subcommittee on Zoning and Franchises will meet. More here.

Wednesday, May 22 at 12 p.m.: The NYC Council’s Land Use Committee will vote on the mayor’s proposed City of Yes for Economic Opportunity, which affects zoning rules related to storefronts and commercial spaces. More here.

Thursday, May 23 at 9:30 a.m.: The NYC Rent Guidelines Board will meet. More here.

Thursday, May 23 at 6 p.m.: Tenants & Neighbors will hold an information session on rent freeze programs for older New Yorkers and those with disabilities. More here.

Thursday, May 23 at 10 a.m.: The NYC Council’s Committee on Housing and Buildings will vote on several bills related to requirements for inspecting and regulating parking garages. More here.

Thursday, May 23 at 10:30 a.m.: The NYC Council’s Committee on Economic Development will vote on a bill requiring the city’s Economic Development Corp. to publish an annual report on the redevelopment of JFK Airport and impact on nearby communities. More here.

NYC Affordable Housing Lotteries Ending Soon: The New York City Department of Housing Preservation and Development (HPD) are closing lotteries on the following subsidized buildings over the next week.

3633 Kingsbridge Avenue Apartments, Bronx, for households earning between $109,715 – $181,740

69 Adams Street Apartments, Brooklyn, for households earning between $105,223 – $218,010

3745 Riverdale Ave Apartments, Bronx, for households earning between $92,572 – $218,010

By JOSEF FEDERMAN (Associated Press)

JERUSALEM (AP) — The chief prosecutor of the International Criminal Court said Monday he is seeking arrest warrants for leaders of Israel and Hamas, including Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, over actions taken during their seven-month war.

While Netanyahu and his defense minister, Yoav Gallant, do not face imminent arrest, the announcement by ICC Chief Prosecutor Karim Khan was a symbolic blow that deepened Israel’s isolation over the war in Gaza.

Khan accused Netanyahu, Gallant, and three Hamas leaders — Yehia Sinwar, Mohammed Deif and Ismail Haniyeh — of war crimes and crimes against humanity in the Gaza Strip and Israel. Hamas has been designated as a terrorist organization by the United States, Canada and the European Union.

A panel of three judges will consider the prosecutor’s evidence and determine whether to issue the arrest warrants and allow a case to proceed. The judges typically take two months to make such decisions.

Israel is not a member of the court, so even if the arrest warrants are issued, Netanyahu and Gallant do not face any immediate risk of prosecution. But Khan’s announcement deepens Israel’s isolation as it presses ahead in Gaza, and the threat of arrest could make it difficult for the Israeli leaders to travel abroad.

Israeli Foreign Minister Israel Katz said the chief prosecutor’s decision against its leaders is “a historic disgrace that will be remembered forever.” He said he would work with world leaders to ensure that any such warrants are not enforced on Israel’s leaders.

Hamas, which is considered a terrorist group by the West, also denounced the ICC prosecutor’s request to arrests its leaders.

Benny Gantz, a former military chief and member of Israel’s War Cabinet with Netanyahu and Gallant, harshly criticized Khan’s announcement, saying Israel fights with “one of the strictest” moral codes, respects international law and has a robust judiciary capable of investigating itself.

“The State of Israel is waging one of the just wars fought in modern history following a reprehensible massacre perpetrated by terrorist Hamas on the 7th of October,” he said.

Still, Netanyahu has come under heavy pressure at home to end the war sooner than later. Thousands of Israelis have joined weekly demonstrations calling on the government to reach a deal to bring home Israeli hostages in Hamas captivity.

In recent days, the two other members of his war Cabinet, Gallant and Benny Gantz, have threatened to resign if Netanyahu does not spell out a clear postwar vision for Gaza.

But on Monday, Netanyahu received wall-to-wall support as politicians across the spectrum condemned the ICC prosecutor’s move, including opposition leader Yair Lapid.

In a statement, Hamas accused the prosecutor of trying to “equate the victim with the executioner.” It said it has the right to resist Israeli occupation, including “armed resistance.”

It also criticized the court for seeking the arrests of only two Israeli leaders and said it should seek warrants for other Israeli leaders.

Both Sinwar and Deif are believed to be hiding in Gaza as Israel tries to hunt them down. But Haniyeh, the supreme leader of the Islamic group, is based in Qatar and frequently travels across the region.

The latest war between Israel and Hamas began on Oct. 7, when terrorists from Gaza crossed into Israel and killed some 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and took 250 others hostage.

Since then, Israel has waged a brutal campaign to dismantle Hamas in Gaza. More than 35,000 Palestinians have been killed in the fighting, at least half of them women and children, according to the latest estimates by Gaza health officials.

The war has triggered a humanitarian crisis in Gaza, displacing roughly 80% of the population and leaving hundreds of thousands of people on the brink of starvation, according to U.N. officials.

Speaking of the Israeli actions, Khan said in a statement that “the effects of the use of starvation as a method of warfare, together with other attacks and collective punishment against the civilian population of Gaza are acute, visible and widely known. … They include malnutrition, dehydration, profound suffering and an increasing number of deaths among the Palestinian population, including babies, other children, and women.”

The United Nations and other aid agencies have repeatedly accused Israel of hindering aid deliveries throughout the war. Israel denies this, saying there are no restrictions on aid entering Gaza and accusing the U.N. of failing to distribute aid.

The U.N. says aid workers have repeatedly come under Israeli fire, and also says ongoing fighting and a security vacuum have impeded deliveries.

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Of the Hamas actions on Oct. 7, Khan, who visited the region in December, said that he saw for himself “the devastating scenes of these attacks and the profound impact of the unconscionable crimes charged in the applications filed today. Speaking with survivors, I heard how the love within a family, the deepest bonds between a parent and a child, were contorted to inflict unfathomable pain through calculated cruelty and extreme callousness. These acts demand accountability.”

After a brief period of international support, Israel has faced increasing criticism as the war has dragged on and the death toll has climbed.

Israel is also facing a South African case in the International Court of Justice, the U.N.’s top court, accusing Israel of genocide. Israel denies those charges.

The ICC was established in 2002 as the permanent court of last resort to prosecute individuals responsible for the world’s most heinous atrocities — war crimes, crimes against humanity, genocide and the crime of aggression.

The U.N. General Assembly endorsed the ICC, but the court is independent.

Dozens of countries don’t accept the court’s jurisdiction over war crimes, genocide and other crimes. They include Israel, the United States, Russia and China.

The ICC becomes involved when nations are unable or unwilling to prosecute crimes on their territory. Israel argues it has a functioning court system.

The ICC accepted “The State of Palestine” as a member in 2015, a year after the Palestinians accepted the court’s jurisdiction.

The court’s chief prosecutor at the time announced in 2021 she was opening an investigation into possible crimes on Palestinian territory. Israel often levies accusations of bias at U.N. and international bodies, and Netanyahu condemned the decision as hypocritical and antisemitic.

In 2020, then U.S. President Donald Trump authorized economic and travel sanctions on the ICC prosecutor and another senior prosecutor. The ICC staff were looking into U.S. and allies’ troops for possible war crimes in Afghanistan.

U.S. President Joe Biden lifted the sanctions in 2021.

Last year, the court issued a warrant for Russian President Vladimir Putin on charges of responsibility for the abductions of children from Ukraine. Russia responded by issuing its own arrest warrants for Khan and ICC judges.

Other high-profile leaders charged by the court include ousted Sudanese strongman Omar al-Bashir on allegations that include genocide in his country’s Darfur region. Former Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi was captured and killed by rebels shortly after the ICC issued a warrant for his arrest on charges linked to the brutal suppression of anti-government protests in 2011.

Molly Quell in Delft, Netherlands, and Mike Corder in Ede, Netherlands, contributed.