Plank Road project puts Saintsville’s property losses at center of Baton Rouge dispute

BATON ROUGE — The dispute over property acquired for the Plank Road relocation project is about more than the value of the land taken from Saintsville, the Louisiana headquarters of the Church of God in Christ.

The church contends that the project disrupted the use of its remaining campus, divided the property and created costs that were not included in the city-parish’s initial compensation offer.

The city-parish acquired approximately 4 acres of the church’s 30-acre property in October 2020. It deposited $175,587 in compensation, according to the court record.

The church challenged the amount, arguing that the taking and the planned relocation of Plank Road affected the value and use of the property that remained.

A 2023 appraisal identified the remaining campus as two tracts: approximately 14 acres fronting the existing Plank Road and approximately 11 acres on the east side of the new roadway. The appraisal estimated $23,616,672 in just compensation for the expropriation of those two tracts.

That figure was an appraisal, not a court award.

More than land

The church’s legal claims included losses associated with the property’s layout and access.

Before the taking, two access points along Plank Road served the campus. The church said the project left one side without an easy access point from the road.

The campus included two sanctuaries, classrooms, dormitories, offices, a warehouse, a gym and an activity center. The church described Saintsville as the headquarters and home campus of its Louisiana jurisdiction, serving 54 churches and more than 5,000 parishioners.

The church also claimed that the project would require costs associated with redesigning the remaining property, acquiring additional land, constructing a new building, purchasing furniture, fixtures and equipment, and relocating the congregation to another worship facility.

Those were claims made by the church. The appellate opinion does not establish that all of those expenses were incurred or awarded.

A public project with private consequences

The Plank Road project was intended to improve transportation access around Baton Rouge Metropolitan Airport. Federal environmental documents describe a proposed four-lane divided roadway alignment behind Saintsville, with alternatives involving grade separation and new intersections.

But the church’s case illustrates how a public project can create consequences beyond the acreage acquired.

Louisiana’s constitutional standard for expropriation requires compensation for the full extent of an owner’s loss. That can include the value of the property taken, relocation expenses, inconvenience and other damages actually incurred because of the taking.

The legal question is whether the compensation reflects the full impact of the acquisition — including damage to the property that remains.

What the record establishes

The court record establishes that the church challenged the initial compensation and that the dispute involved the value and use of the remaining property.

It does not, by itself, establish a final itemized breakdown of the church’s losses or confirm that every claimed expense was awarded.

The difference between the initial payment and the church’s broader compensation claim is the central issue in the case.

For taxpayers, the dispute raises a question that extends beyond Saintsville: When a public project requires the taking of land, how fully does the city-parish account for the cost of disrupting the institutions and communities that remain?

For the church, the issue is whether the project’s compensation reflects what was lost, not only the land that was taken, but the campus that was left behind.