PHILADELPHIA -- Attorneys for St. Patrick Church have filed suit against the Borough of Kennett Square, claiming the borough is engaged in a course of religious discrimination against the church and its school, The Daily Local News reported.

The attorneys, George Brutscher and Andrew Levine, say the borough has unfairly blocked the church from expanding its campus by enacting legislation that restricted its plans.

The suit cites the Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act of 2000 (RLUIPA), which protects religious groups against zoning laws and ordinances. Levine cited zoning ordinance changes and a historic preservation ordinance blocking demolition of buildings except in extreme circumstances as measures that made it all but impossible for the church to expand, the newspaper reported.

"We're seeking to have zoning ordinances and the historic preservation ordinance that have been used to restrict the parish's ability to expand the school struck down to the extent that they are being used to inhibit the parish from freely practicing its religion and giving students a quality religious education," Levine said.

Council President Doug Stirling, pastor at the Bible Methodist Church in Kennett Square, rejected the notion that the borough was discriminating against St. Patrick.

"To me, it doesn't make sense," he said. "St. Patrick has been a wonderful element of the borough throughout the years, as are members of the parish."

The suit names the borough, the council as a whole and each of its nine members. It alleges RLUIPA violations and violations of the U.S. and Pennsylvania constitutions and seeks an injunction against the borough from enforcing the zoning and preservation ordinances. The suit also asks for compensatory damages.