Blair Road United Methodist Church has always sought to support ministries that serve our community with integrity and care. 

Blair Road School is a separate legal entity from the Church, but it was originally established to maintain a close and collaborative relationship with the Church. This included having church leadership represented on the School's Board of Directors, following shared bylaws agreed upon by both parties, and operating in a way that reflected the mission and values of the Church.

We are deeply saddened that the connection has deteriorated. We are working diligently with legal counsel from both parties to ensure uninterrupted care for children and their families, and that the welfare of the children, families, community, school and their staff, and church are honored and protected. 

We remain committed to being a place of grace, service, and faithfulness to our community as we move forward.

Below is a letter from the church’s attorney, Ellinger & Carr:

This law firm represents Blair Road United Methodist Church, Inc., a North Carolina nonprofit corporation (the "Church") and the landlord pursuant to the purported Lease Agreement by and between Blair Road UMC School, Inc., predecessor to Blair Road School, Inc., a North Carolina nonprofit corporation, as tenant (the "School") effective as of September 20, 2018 which terminated September 20, 2023, as supplemented by the "Proposal for Addressing Utilities" (the "Addendum"; collectively the "Lease").

This letter shall serve as the School's notice to vacate the Church's property at 9135 Blair Road, in Mint Hill, North Carolina (the "Premises"). The Church will not accept rent payments after April 1, 2025, nor will it pay for the cost of janitorial services.

While the Church has no obligation to provide this notice to you more than two months in advance, the Church has no desire to disrupt the continuing care and education of the children attending the School prior to the last day of school. According to the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools District Events Calendar found at https://www.cmsk12.org/calendar#calendar1/20250603/month, the last day of school is June 10, 2025. Therefore, the School is directed to vacate on or before Friday June 13, 2025.

The relationship between the School, its leadership, and the Church has become unnecessarily antagonistic and therefore untenable, disruptive to the Church's ministry, and no longer feasible as set forth below.

It is my understanding, based upon historical background information received from my client, that beginning in 1981, the Church sponsored a Mother's Morning Out program and cared for four (4) infants. The program proved popular with the congregation and surrounding community and the Blair Road United Methodist Church Preschool (the "UMC Preschool") grew, under the auspices and control of the Church and its ministry, from eight (8) students in 1981 to ninety (90) students, ten (10) teachers, a director, and a governing committee under the oversight of the Church in 2009. Between 1981 and 2009, the Church financed the construction of an Education Building, increased space for Boy Scout and Girl Scout programs, athletics, youth groups, and a nursery, all for the operation of the UMC Preschool and the Church's ministry to the Mint Hill community.

According to the Church's historical records, [the current director] was appointed the After-School Program Director in 2014 and named Preschool/Afterschool Director in 2015. Based on historical Church Council minutes, [the current director] and [the director’s] parents were involved with Church activities, including the UMC Preschool. On August 18, 2018, the Church's Finance Committee received a recommendation and voted to legally separate the Church from the UMC Preschool for liability reasons, for each of the Church's and the UMC Preschool's protection. Pursuant to that recommendation, on September 20, 2018, the School was formed with the North Carolina Secretary of State as a North Carolina nonprofit corporation and as a separate legal entity from the Church.

Bylaws were promulgated making clear that the Church would continue to have oversight over the school, that the purpose of the School was to operate as an "educational institution for Christian educational purposes," and that the School's Board of Directors must include Church officials, including the Associate Pastor, a member of the congregation, a member of the Church's Finance Committee, and a Church Trustee. The School would observe the usual corporate formalities, including holding regular meetings, keeping financial records, and making the same available for inspection.

On information and belief, the Lease was executed with the expectation that the school would continue to operate pursuant to the Bylaws, in furtherance of the ministry of the Church, in the spirit in which the UMC Preschool had been operating since 1981 in close cooperation with the Church. Therefore, the monthly rent payments were set below market rate, with the Church paying for utilities, cleaning supplies, janitorial services, pest control, and other expenses.

It is my understanding that between September 20, 2018 and January 2022, attendance at the school continued to grow, increasing its usage of the Church's facilities and utilities, and therefore increasing costs, straining the Church's finances as a result. Therefore, the School agreed, pursuant to the Addendum, that because the School was occupying the Premises 80% each week, the School would reimburse the Church (1) for the School's 50% proportionate share of the utilities including water, electric and gas; (2) 50% of the cleaning service fees; (3) the cost of annual carpet cleaning; (4) the cost of pest control treatments if the same occurred more than quarterly. In order to cover those costs, the School would adjust tuition rates accordingly.

The Church has approached [the current director] several times to abide by the terms of the Addendum, but on information and belief, [the current director] continues to refuse to reimburse the Church for utilities, janitorial services and other expenses in accordance with the Addendum at a fair and reasonable rate.

By its terms, the Lease terminated on September 20, 2023, yet the School has continued to occupy the Premises since that time without notifying the Church of its desire to extend the lease for an additional term. Even though the Church considers the School to be a holdover tenant, the church has allowed the school to remain in good faith while repeatedly requesting renegotiation of the Lease, including increasing the rent and further documenting the agreement as to expenses, school supplies and cleaning fees, to compensate the Church for the increasing costs of the same, all of which have been refused. Based on current calculations, the School should compensate the Church at a minimum of$3,500 per month, but pays $1,485 per month, less than 50% of what is needed to compensate the Church. The Church estimates cleaning fees alone to cost $1,500 per month, and operation of the Educational Building more than $37,000 per year. The School is paying a fraction of those costs.

The School appears to be operating in violation of its Bylaws by, on information and belief, (1) not holding regular meetings; (2) not including the required Church representatives in those meetings as Directors; and (3) refusing to make its financial records available for inspection.

Furthermore, without notification to, or the authorization or consent of Church representatives and Directors, on September 22, 2023 the School changed its name with the North Carolina Secretary of State, removing the "UMC,” and therefore its affiliation with the Church.

Clearly, the School is operating in contravention to the Church and is not abiding by the spirit of the original purpose of the UMC Preschool and the Lease. The School has separated itself from the Church, yet continues to profit from its former, more than 40-year association with the Church by keeping the Church's logo on School vans and expecting the Church to continue to finance the School's operations to the Church's detriment. Church leadership is extremely concerned that the School is not following corporate formalities, that it may be holding itself out as a federal 501(c)(3) organization, and that the School is clouding the Church's reputation in the community and as a nonprofit organization itself.

Because the school will not negotiate with the Church, pay for its fair share of expenses, and is evidently operating in direct contravention to the Church, its ministry, and its congregation, the Church has no option but to give notice to vacate by June 13, 2025.