DELRAY BEACH — The city's oldest church must turn over a small vacant lot to a developer that plans to use the land for townhomes, a judge has ruled.

Circuit Judge Jonathan Gerber determined last week that Mount Olive Baptist Church reneged on a contract to sell the land on Northwest Fourth Avenue for use in the Atlantic Grove project, a mix of stores, offices and residences that was completed in 2003.

Gerber rejected the church's contention that two deacons who signed a contract to sell the land were not authorized to do so. Attorney Michael Brown had argued that in Baptist churches, land is owned by the congregation. An expert on black Baptist churches testified that land can be sold only through a vote of the church members.

Atlantic Grove attorneys said that defense was concocted months after the lawsuit was filed last year to cover up the church's negotiations with another developer. They said because the church is incorporated, it must abide by the same rules as any other company.

Attorney Rick Hutchison said Monday the developer is excited about being able to proceed with the project. Fourteen townhomes are planned for the site, including four dedicated for first-time, low-income buyers.

Brown, who also is mayor of Riviera Beach, said Mount Olive plans to appeal the case.

"We were very disappointed and surprised the court ruled the way it did," Brown said Monday. "There are certain institutions the court has a difficult time understanding, and apparently religious institutions are one of them."

During the July trial, Brown argued that Atlantic Grove hoodwinked Mount Olive into an unfair deal to profit off the land.

Hutchison said Gerber's decision shows that "there were no facts to support that contention whatsoever." The judge's ruling notes that the church initiated negotiations and was represented by an attorney and a real estate broker.

Given the area's rising land values, Gerber stated, church leaders' decision to seek a better deal for the parishioners was understandable but it was "contrary to the weight of the law."

"The decency of the people who lead and comprise Mt. Olive is not a basis for them to be excused from the law," the ruling stated.

Gerber ordered the two sides to close on the property Sept. 30. Atlantic Grove Partners, which is made up of private developer New Urban Communities and two local nonprofit groups, must pay the church $300,000 for the land.