Zoning cops are good at blocking affordable housing, but in Troy, New York, regulators gave the green light to an 11-unit apartment building on vacant land. But just as construction was about to begin, the project hit another, familiar hurdle.
Concerned neighbors (who already own the home) filed a complaint. lawsuit To keep outsiders out. Rather than challenge the developer directly, project opponents took the city to court, arguing that regulators did not conduct sufficient research before approving the zoning changes. The city won in court in 2023, but opponents appealed. inversion October 24, 2024.
What did “concerned citizens” give as the reason for legal action? Evidence of nearby quarries believed to have been used by Native Americans in the distant past. Strangely, when these residents secured housing for themselves, proximity to this location was not an issue. What they call “archaeological sensitivity” came later.
The New York State Environmental Quality Review Act (SEQRA) makes it easy for citizens to stall or destroy New York homes with any excuse. Courts are sometimes swayed by vague concepts such as “community” and “neighborhood character.” Opponents of the project can even cite general concerns without pointing to specific harm.
In Guilderland, New York, civic groups sounded the alarm about global climate change after a developer proposed building five apartment buildings and a Costco. The group, represented by the same lawyers currently working on the Troy home destruction effort, won the case at the trial court level. But the appellate court reversed The 2022 decision noted that construction would result in net air quality benefits, not by reducing driving.
But these NIMBY (“not in my backyard”) activists don’t need to win in court to achieve their goals. If you lose, you can still use SEQRA to freeze construction for months or more. In Old Westbury, Long Island, developers were waiting. 25 years To obtain permission to construct a religious facility. The legal labyrinth also costs money. Added SEQRA lawsuit 2 million dollars in a single residential project in Hempstead, New York.
Similar laws elsewhere have created unreasonable claims. In the summer of 2024, two California residents transformed an ordinary slab of asphalt into ahistoric parking lot‘ and filed a lawsuit against a local charity to block the food bank plan.
Even without litigation, SEQRA can add cost and delay to any project. The law requires local governments to determine broader environmental impacts. If a proposed project contains complex elements, regulators must conduct a costly and thorough review.
The one-two punch of zoning regulations and SEQRA is especially onerous for private developers looking to add housing amid a national housing shortage, raising housing affordability issues. half Percentage of homeowners and renters in the United States.
Clearing the zoning maze is just the beginning. In recent years, the zoning police have blocked efforts to construct the building. small house Calhoun, Georgia Nature Preserve cemetery Located in Brooks Township, Michigan. separation unit To the adult children of Seattle homeowners. Our public interest law firm, the Institute for Justice, has fought regulators in all of these cases as part of our work. Zoning Justice Project.
The builders who survived New York’s zoning maze will be up against SEQRA next. Those who hold out must pass on the additional costs to the ultimate losers: buyers and tenants. Troy’s project is still hanging in the balance. Providing solutions to the housing crisis shouldn’t be so complicated and burdensome. If New York state lawmakers are serious about affordable housing, repealing or at least reining in SEQRA would be a great start.
