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A contentious long-running legal dispute between the leaders of a suburban Cleveland, Ohio synagogue and city authorities is finally over, with the Aleksander Shul being given permission by University Heights to operate exclusively as a synagogue, the Cleveland Jewish News reported.

The fight became so heated that in September the mayor of University Heights hired a private investigator to observe Jews entering and exiting the house during the first day of Rosh Hashanah, outraging local Orthodox Jews and further inflaming tensions in the simmering dispute over worship protocols and city zoning.

The synagogue had been previously shut down in June, after 19 months of negotiations and legal battles with the city over zoning and building code ordinances did not result in an agreement.

Several weeks later, a temporary agreement was reached allowing the Aleksander Shul to be open for Shabbat and High Holy Days. However, the Orthodox synagogue and its lawyer said they were not backing down from what they said was unfair treatment.

On November 22, the University Heights planning commission sided with the synagogue, approving special use and variance permits it needed to operate. The approval was passed unanimously by the council.

At the meeting plans were presented by a local architecture firm to renovate and build an addition to the building that would allow for the congregation to assemble on the first floor.

The synagogue was told it will have to return to the planning commission for an approval to its site plan once the plan is more detailed.

(Arutz Sheva’s North American desk is keeping you updated until the start of Shabbat in New York. The time posted automatically on all Arutz Sheva articles, however, is Israeli time.)