Arlington Heights disputes Boeger suit claims

Claims Arlington Heights officials discriminated against disabled citizens by rejecting an apartment building for the mentally ill have no basis in fact and are contradicted by the village's own efforts to accommodate the disabled, village lawyers argue in recently filed federal court documents.

In a 17-page formal response to a lawsuit filed over the proposed Boeger Place apartments, the village says the plan's developers can show no evidence of discriminatory acts and are months late in filing their claim.

“The Village of Arlington Heights has made substantial accommodations for persons with disability by virtue of its zoning ordinance and its provisions for group homes which have been established throughout the village,” village attorney Jack Siegel writes in the court filing. “Such facilities are permitted uses in approximately 80 percent of the village's land area and are permitted in all residential zoning districts.”

Allowing the proposed Boeger Place project, Siegel writes, would require rezoning, amendment of the village's comprehensive plan and seven major zoning variations — something officials have never done for any similar development for non-disabled residents.

The response asks a federal judge to dismiss all three counts of the lawsuit and order the plaintiffs to pay the village's legal costs.

Attorneys for the plaintiffs could not be reached for comment Friday.

Developers and supporters of the proposed 30-unit apartment building at 120-122 E. Boeger Road sued the village Nov. 16 in U.S. District Court, claiming officials violated the Fair Housing Act and Americans with Disabilities Act by rejecting the project. The suit seeks undisclosed damages and authority to move forward with the apartment project.

Village trustees voted 4-3 on May 17 to deny developers zoning variances it needed to move forward with the plan to provide supportive, low-income housing for residents with mental illness.

The proposal sparked strong opposition from residents in Arlington Heights and Buffalo Grove who live near the Boeger site, as well as from parents with children at nearby Buffalo Grove High School.

Supporters, including numerous mental health advocates and social service agencies, say the project is necessary because there is a severe lack of housing for mentally ill citizens, often forcing them to be institutionalized unnecessarily.

The case is scheduled to be in court March 21 for a pretrial status hearing.