Agenda - Planning Commission - 11/03/2011

Home

Zoning Bulletin September 10, 2011 1 Volume 5 No. 17 Park had not adhered to the requirements of the FHA necessary to qual- .) ify as "housing for older persons." Accordingly, the court found that the "housing for older persons exemption" never applied to the Park. Wa- terhouse attempted to amend Park rules to make clear it was open to all applicants on a nondiscriminatory basis. Instead, found the court, the City "forced [Waterhouse] to violate federal law by directing them spe- cifically to lock in their discriminatory rule." Specifically, the court held that the City's ordinances violated the FHA by: "mak[ing] unavailable ... dwelling[s] to any person because of fa- milial status,' 42 U.S.C. 3604(a); by `discriminat[ing] against any person in the terms conditions, or privileges of sale or rental of a dwelling ... because of ... familial status,' 42 U.S.C. 3604(b); and by `interfer[ing] with any person in the exercise or enjoyment of, or on account of his having exercised or enjoyed, ... any right granted or protected by [the FHA's prohibitions on discrimination],' 42 U.S.C. 3617." In other words, "[t]he restrictions contained in the subject ordinances necessar- ily impede[d] non -seniors from obtaining housing in the [Park] and thus discriminate[d] on the basis of familial status," concluded the court. Having found the ordinances "purported to require or permit actions that [were] discriminatory under the [FHA]" (i.e., requiring the contin- ued operation of a seniors -only park that had not been adhering to FHA requirements regarding policies and verification of senior occupancy), the court found the ordinances were invalid. Home Rule Powers —Municipalities Challenge State Agency Regulatory Amendments Municipalities claim amendments "steal" their legislative capacity for enacting land use controls Citation: New York Blue Line Council, Inc. v. Adirondack Park Agency, 86 A.D.3d 756, 927 N.Y.S.2d 432 (3d Dep't 2011) NEW YORK (07/14/11)—This case addressed the issue of whether municipalities can challenge state agency interpretation of statutes and regulations where the result impacts the municipality in its governmental capacity. It also addressed whether certain state agency rule making vio- lates municipal home rule powers. The Background/Facts: The Adirondack Park Agency (the "APA") is charged with regulating land use and development within the Ad- irondack Park. The APA is empowered to, among other things, adopt, amend, and repeal rules and regulations consistent with the Adirondack Park Agency Act (the "Act"). In 2008, the APA adopted nine such regu- latory amendments. Thereafter, counties, towns, persons, and entities brought legal actions challenging four of those 2008 amendments. The © 2011 Thomson Reuters 7