Mt. Holly Gardens Project Survives Discrimination Claim

Name: McKirdy & Riskin, P.A.
Address: 136 South Street, Morristown, NJ, 07850
Telephone: 973-539-8900

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by: Anthony F. Della Pelle

5 Jan 2011

Federal Court Finds No Disparate Impact on Low Income Property Owners

Replacement of low-income housing by eminent domain with higher-priced homes as part of a redevelopment project does not constitute disparate treatment if all its residents, not just minorities, cannot afford to stay according to U.S. District Judge Noel Hillman. In an opinion released on this week in Mt. Holly Citizens in Action v. Twp. of Mount Holly, the court found that Mount Holly’s plan to demolish 329 row houses to make way for market-rate housing did not meet the legal definition of disparate impact, nor was the township not pursuing a legitimate government interest in the least restrictive way. The plaintiffs argued that the plan would have a disparate impact on minorities because four out of five residents in the area are African-American or Hispanic. The court wrote, however, that “if none of the plaintiffs can afford the new homes, it is not just the African-American and Hispanic plaintiffs who are impacted.” The plaintiffs had previous challenged the project in 2003, with the New Jersey Appellate Division upholding the project in 2007. The plaintiffs are considering whether or not to appeal the Federal Court decision. A copy of the Federal Court’s January 3, 2011, opinion can be found here. A copy of the New Jersey Appellate Division’s 2007 opinion can be found here. For a copy of the New Jersey Public Advocate’s report “Evicted from the American Dream: The Redevelopment of Mount Holly Gardens”, please click here.

This project was also the subject of a Fox News story last summer entitled: “Eminent Domain Battle Brewing in New Jersey Township“.

For articles discussing Mount Holly’s Redevelopment of the Mount Holly Garden’s neighborhood, please see the following:

NJ Town Revives Eminent Domain Abuse of 1950s, The Huffington Post;

Public Advocate: Redevelopment law needs to be revamped, The Star-Ledger;

Judge dismisses Gardens lawsuit, The Burlington County Times

The author wishes to acknowledge the assistance of Cory K. Kestner, Esq., of McKirdy & Riskin, PA, in the preparation of this article.