WENATCHEE, Wash.—Today, a federal judge dismissed a constitutional lawsuit brought by the Institute for Justice (IJ) on behalf of Lighthouse Christian Ministries, a Wenatchee soup kitchen that the city shut down last year after pressure from a handful of politically connected neighbors. Lighthouse invested $1.6 million to transform a vacant warehouse into a soup kitchen that served hot meals daily for six years. The city revoked its permit without warning, without prior citations, and without a second chance. 

“Today’s ruling is disappointing, but it doesn’t change the fundamental reality: the city destroyed a soup kitchen that was feeding hungry people every day to appease a handful of vocal complainers,” said Christie Hebert, an IJ attorney representing Lighthouse. “The Constitution doesn’t allow the city to irrationally shut the soup kitchen’s doors based on prejudice and we intend to appeal.” 

Lighthouse was founded in 2009 and opened its current facility in 2019 after spending $1.6 million to renovate a vacant warehouse, complete with a management plan the city approved. For six years, it served 75 to 100 people a day without major incident. Then, in 2025, after a handful of politically connected business owners pressured city officials, Wenatchee revoked Lighthouse’s conditional use permit, pointing to trivial issues like a locked gate and misrepresented emergency-call data that attributed every police response in the surrounding blocks to Lighthouse. In December 2025, IJ sued on Lighthouse’s behalf in federal court. 

“This is a bump in the road, not the end of the road,” said Kolin Oliveira, the director of Lighthouse Christian Ministries. “Our ministry is about inspiring hope and never giving up, and we’re going to see this fight through to the end.” 

“Wenatchee abused its zoning power to shut down a soup kitchen, not because of any real problem, but because influential neighbors didn’t like who was being served,” said Riley Grace Borden, an IJ litigation fellow.  “We will keep fighting until Lighthouse can reopen its doors.” 

The court dismissed Lighthouse’s due process, equal protection, and takings claims at the earliest stage of the case. The soup kitchen, which remains closed, intends to appeal to the Ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals based in San Francisco. 

This case is part of IJ’s Zoning Justice Project, a nationwide initiative challenging abusive zoning regulations that prevent property owners from serving their communities. Cities cannot abuse land-use laws to appease influential neighbors or punish charities for serving unpopular populations—and IJ is fighting to make sure they don’t.