Judge Orders Yonkers Parties Back to Court
|
|
The Federal judge in the Yonkers housing discrimination suit today ordered the parties in the dispute into court on Monday to explain why he should not designate an alternative to a site owned by the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of New York for public housing. The Federal judge in the Yonkers housing discrimination suit today ordered the parties in the dispute into court on Monday to explain why he should not designate an alternative to a site owned by the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of New York for public housing. His action followed the City Council’s continued refusal last night to select a substitute for the church property originally designated as one of seven sites for 200 units of public housing in the city’s mainly white neighborhoods. The judge, Leonard B. Sand of District Court in Manhattan, offered his own alternative last week after an earlier decision by the Council not to do so and set today as the deadline for the city to make its own choice. Council members have said they do not want to alienate more residents of the city’s east side, where a total of 1,000 units of low- and middle-income housing are scheduled to rise as part of the ”remedy” for four decades of intentional discrimination. Both the church-owned site and the alternative are on the east side. Issue of Suitability The Council did take action, however, by asking for a hearing to determine the suitability of Judge Sand’s selection, a privately owned three-acre parcel on Gramercy Avenue. Paul Pickelle, the city’s Corporation Counsel, said that ”just last year it was found to be unsuitable.” That determination was made by the Department of Housing and Urban Development, which will build the first 200 units, because of the site’s relative isolation, according to Michael Sculnick, the city’s lawyer. Mayor Nicholas C. Wasicsko, who favors the Gramercy site, said ”it was initially assessed as being accessible only through a narrow residential street, but that has changed because of a projected access road to Central Park Avenue,” a nearby thoroughfare. City officials say that the Federal housing agency, which has inspected the location more thoroughly in light of Judge Sand’s selection, is now concerned about site development costs, including the removal of subsurface rocks, prevention of noise pollution and other problems. Fines for Contempt The Gramercy site would replace a portion of St. Joseph’s Seminary land, one of the original locations selected by the Councilmen and included in a consent decree approved in January by a 5-to-2 vote. Intense opposition to the entire decree by neighborhood groups prompted two Councilmen to change their votes in early August, however, resulting in a 4-to-3 vote to reject the decree. This led to a finding of contempt by Judge Sand and the imposition of fines that reached $1 million a day and brought the city to the edge of bankrupcy. More : query.nytimes.com |