The Virginian-Pilot reports that City Council unanimously approved a permit Tuesday allowing the Buddhist Education Center of America to use a site in Kempsville as a religious facility.

The monks have been looking for a new worship space since their house in Pungo fell into foreclosure in 2009.

That property had been the subject of litigation before the foreclosure. The city had denied the monks a permit to hold religious services after neighbors complained about traffic. The monks sued the city in federal court, claiming the permit denial was unlawful. The lawsuit was later settled.