Developer Sues Oxnard Over Rejected Low-Income Housing

The developer of a rejected low-income housing project has sued the city, seeking to stop nearly all development citywide until a state-certified plan is created that addresses the needs of the poor.

It’s the second time in four years the city has been slapped with such a lawsuit.

“We told them we were going to have to do this, and now we’ve done it,” said attorney Barbara Macri-Ortiz, who was also involved in the 1994 suit. “Let’s hope they reassess their legal position and act in the best interests of all the citizens of Oxnard.”

City Atty. Gary Gillig said he expects the City Council to direct him to defend the suit after the panel discusses the legal action in private Tuesday evening.

The 30-page lawsuit was filed Friday in Santa Barbara Superior Court on behalf of the Carpinteria-based developer of the 94-unit complex in El Rio and an Oxnard woman who had applied to live there.

“Nothing that’s in the complaint surprises me,” Gillig said. “We had been threatened previously, so we were ready. . . . The record will show we build more affordable housing than any other city in the county. We just have more vigorous advocates for low-income housing than anywhere else.”

The suit alleges that the council illegally denied the development’s construction on several grounds, including a state law commonly known as the anti-NIMBY (Not In My Backyard) statute.

In August, the council reversed the Planning Commission’s approval of the project on the grounds that it failed to conform to city guidelines.

On a 4-1 vote, the council agreed that current zoning regulations on the 5 1/2-acre Vineyard Avenue site prohibits such a development. But the developer disagrees.

“I understand that they are upset,” Gillig said. “However, the City Council is allowed to exercise its discretion. It’s not the first project that got turned down in this community.”

Neighborhood residents had turned out en masse to oppose the project they said would exacerbate existing problems in the area that include congested roads, overcrowded schools and a lack of parks.

Moreover, the suit alleges that the city’s housing policies regarding affordable housing violate state law.

The 1994 suit made similar allegations and was settled when the city paid about $200,000 in attorney fees and agreed to revise its housing plan.

“The city has only met 13% of its fair share of the regional need for low and very low-income housing units, while it has met 101% of the market and moderate rate housing need,” the suit alleges.

The Vineyard Gardens Apartments would have met 10% of the city’s affordable housing commitments, and the failure to approve the project is “discriminatory,” according to the suit.

Gillig said since the previous suit was settled, the city has been “diligent” in ensuring it complies with state statutes regarding affordable housing.