A coalition of Kingston, NY property owners and the Hudson Valley Property Owners Association, Inc., represented by Belkin Burden Goldman, LLP, have filed a lawsuit challenging that city’s opting into the ETPA. The case was filed on Thursday, October 27, 2022 in Ulster County, Supreme Court of New York. On October 28th, the Court advised that it would set this matter for an expedited briefing schedule.
Kingston opted into the ETPA following a vacancy survey showing that a rate of less than five percent existed; a precondition for entry into the ETPA. However, the plaintiffs allege and demonstrate via a detailed evidentiary submission that the vacancy survey was fatally flawed such that the actual vacancy rate exceeds five percent.
In his affirmation supporting the request for expedited relief, BBG Litigation Partner Matthew Brett stated that the Resolution adopting the ETPA, among other grounds, constitutes “an infringement upon constitutionally protected property rights, because the Resolution does not bear any real and substantial relationship to the alleged housing emergency it purports to seek to alleviate” and is an “infringement upon constitutionally protected property rights, because their actions constitute a governmental exercise of its police powers without substantive due process…”
If you wish to discuss this matter, please contact BBG.