A federal lawsuit alleging unfair housing practices in Derby is scheduled to go to trial July 26.
Valley Housing Limited Partnership, Home Development, Inc. and Housing Operations Management Enterprises (HOME) claim the city discriminated against people with disabilities by not immediately issuing a certificate of zoning compliance in 2004 for three multi-family apartment buildings on Caroline and Fourth streets.
A Superior Court judge has already ruled in favor of the plaintiffs.
That ruling allowed the project to go forward.
However, the group is also suing the city for some $800,000 in damages, claiming a 39-month unfair delay by Derby hit them in the pocketbook.
HOME and the Valley Housing Limited Partnership are renovating the buildings to house people with mental illness, past substance abuse problems and people with HIV or AIDS, according to the lawsuit.
The plaintiffs claim then-Mayor Marc Garofalo pressured the city building department to not issue certificates for the project. Garofalo’s allies on the zoning board then rejected the application, the plaintiffs claim.
However, Derby claims the developers were never upfront with their plans for the buildings — and that the rejections were based only on the city’s interpretation of local zoning.
Nobody’s Talking
A e‑mail seeking comment was left Tuesday with Garofalo.
John Blazi, a Waterbury attorney representing the city, said he could not comment.
Messages seeking comment were left Tuesday with Amy Eppler-Epstein, an attorney representing the developers.
Plaintiffs Say
Most of the residents who move in will receive off-site support and counseling from the Birmingham Group in Ansonia.
The addresses of the buildings in question are: 175 – 177 Caroline St., 225 – 227 Caroline St. and 16 Fourth St.
The lawsuit claims Derby officials, including Garofalo, publicly vowed to stop the development because of concerns over the property from neighbors. The developers claim Garofalo called Derby a “dumping ground” for people with social service needs.
City officials made the developers appear before the city’s Zoning Board of Appeals, even though they were not legally required to do so, the plaintiffs claim.
The city’s ZBA rejected an application in 2005. That rejection was overruled by a Superior Court judge in 2007, at which time Derby issued a zoning certificate.
Read the document below for a full account of the plaintiffs’ claims.
Derby Says
In its court documents, Derby denies the claims.
In a letter dated June 24, Blazi, writes that the developers tried to keep the city and its residents in the dark about the specific type of housing planned for the Caroline and Fourth street properties.
The project had been described as simply “affordable housing,” court docs allege.
The lawsuit was filed in 2006. Both sides have met several times over the years to hash out a settlement. None of the negotiations have been successful.
Read the document below for Derby’s side of the lawsuit.
