Kansas couple sought $550,000 over wedding venue sprinkler rules; appeals court revives one claim

The dispute began in April 2020, when the couple's business received a special use permit to build a wedding venue. (AI photo) A couple in Kansas, United States, who planned to build a wedding venue have received another opportunity to pursue part of their legal case against Leavenworth County. George Daniel Lynch and Cynthia Lynch, who own Whiskey Ridge, LLC, had sought damages of at least $550,000 after a dispute over building permits and fire safety requirements. The Kansas Court of Appeals has now ruled that one of their constitutional claims can proceed, while upholding the dismissal of their other claims.According to the court documents, the dispute began in April 2020, when the couple's business received a special use permit to build a wedding venue. At the time, the permit did not require the proposed building to have a fire suppression sprinkler system. However, construction did not begin immediately because of the COVID-19 pandemic.More than two years later, when the business approached the county for a building permit, it was informed that its original special use permit had expired. During that period, the county had also adopted a building code requiring sprinkler syst...