City Council Nixes 23-Unit Mixed Use Development On Split 4-4 Vote; Developer Responds By Filing Fair Housing Lawsuit, Alleging 20 Examples Of City's "Exclusionary Practices" That Disproportionately Affects Minorities

In Lansing, Michigan, the Lansing State Journal reports:

• The City of Lansing and three City Council members are listed as defendants in a lawsuit filed [last] week by a local housing developer who claims the federal Fair Housing and Civil Rights acts were violated after a controversial council vote.
  
  A filing with the U.S. District Court Western District of Michigan [] names developer Sam Saboury as the plaintiff in a complaint that "addresses the City of Lansing's ongoing discriminatory acts and pattern and practice of effectively preventing affordable housing opportunities, which disproportionately affects minorities residing in the City of Lansing."
  
  Contacted Thursday by the Lansing State Journal, Saboury wouldn't confirm he's the plaintiff. "I don't know the process," Saboury said. "I'm not supposed to talk to anyone until later."
  
  At-Large Council Member Carol Wood, First Ward Council Member Jody Washington and Third Ward Council Member Adam Hussain are listed as defendants in the filing that also mentions about 20 examples of what Saboury's attorneys describe as "exclusionary practices." The case is assigned to Judge Robert Jonker, according to the court's Lansing office.
  
  Saboury's complaint states he was subjected to discriminatory conduct by the defendants when approval was not granted for a payment in lieu of taxes agreement for a $5.9 million, 23-unit mixed-used development in Old Town. The project, proposed for Washington Avenue, also included 5,000 square feet of commercial retail space.
  
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  The lawsuit follows a Fair Housing Act complaint that Mayor Virg Bernero said was filed in May by a resident. The complaint was sent to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and alleges that council members' 4-4 vote on tax breaks for Saboury's project was a violation.

For more, see Developer sues Lansing, City Council members (Developer alleges city, three City Council members violated fair housing and civil rights acts. Mayor Virg Bernero says he hopes members named in lawsuit "learn something from this experience.")