Pastor Chris Avell pleads NOT GUILTY to charges after opening his church to homeless looking to escape the Ohio cold

Pastor Chris Avell, of Dad's Place in Bryan, Ohio, was criminally charged with zoning violationsThe City of Bryan said the church is not permitted to house people and has failed to correct fire code violationsStarting in March 2023, Avell opened the church doors to provide shelter to homeless people 

An Ohio pastor has pleaded not guilty to criminal charges after he was accused of numerous zoning code violations for opening his church to homeless people.

Pastor Chris Avell, of Dad’s Place in Bryan, Ohio, was criminally charged with zoning violations on December 8.

The church, located next door to a homeless shelter, started opening its doors to people escaping the cold in March 2023, reported WTVG.

On November 21, the fire chief conducted a fire code inspection and discovered 18 violations. Officials performed two more inspections in January and found several violations that had not been fixed.

‘The only reason this is still an ongoing fire/safety concern is because Chris Avell ignored the City’s notices in the fall hence forcing criminal charges related to zoning,’ city leaders claimed.

Pastor Chris Avell, of Dad’s Place in Bryan, Ohio, was charged with criminal zoning violations for letting homeless people stay at his church

The church, located next door to a homeless shelter, started opening its doors to people escaping the cold in March 2023

The City of Bryan said the pastor ignored notices about violations which forced them to file criminal charges

Dad’s Place appears to continue to be open to sheltering people from the cold. On Facebook, the church said they would remain open 24/7 as a warming station from January 13 to January 16 to escape the bitter cold that gripped Ohio.

‘We’ll see, but I’m just, I’m praising God that at least as of now if I’m understanding correctly, the people can stay,’ Avell said. ‘We’re a church, you know, this is what we do.’

Jeremy Dys, the attorney representing Avell said, ‘We’re disappointed with the city that they would take that extra measure.’

‘There are multiple attorneys on this case, Mayor Schlade and anyone from the city could have come and talked to any of us at any time.’

The city said the church is located in a C-3 zoning district, which means it is not permitted for residential use.

The violations found in November include improper installation of laundry facilities, inadequate or unsafe exit areas, an improperly installed gas grill, an unpermitted gas dryer, no permitted and approved kitchen hood over the stove and limited ventilation.

During a November inspection, the fire department said they found 18 violations. Then returned twice in January and found people sleeping in the building and a gas leak

On November 17, the city zoning administrator recommended that Bryan Chief of Police Gregory Ruskey (pictured) file charges against Dad’s Place

When the fire department returned on January 9, they found five violations had not been fixed. They returned again on January 16  and discovered approximately 20 people sleeping in the building and a gas leak.

The zoning administrator inspected Dad’s Place on November 17 and said he saw multiple people sleeping in the building and were told there was a bedroom in the facility.

This led to the office recommending that Bryan Chief of Police Gregory Ruskey file charges against Dad’s Place.

On September 30, police received a complaint about a sex offender living out of his vehicle in the church parking lot.

The City of Bryan said they started receiving an increase in calls for service based on inappropriate activity at Dad’s Place since May 2023.