Judge Rules Village Of Woodbury Laws Overlooked Chassidishe Residents

A state judge has voided the Comprehensive Plan and two zoning laws the Village of Woodbury adopted in 2011, siding with arguments by the Village of Kiryas Joel and affiliated plaintiffs that Woodbury had unfairly overlooked the high-density housing needs of chassidishe residents.

In a ruling dated Wednesday, state Supreme Court Justice Francis Nicolai declared that the omission constituted “exclusionary zoning,” even though the Comprehensive Plan and zoning laws had no “language or provision expressly prohibiting members of the Hasidic Jewish Community from residing in the Village.”

Woodbury Mayor Michael Queenan said Thursday afternoon that his village will appeal the decision. Dennis Lynch, an attorney for Woodbury, cast it as a mixed ruling, noting in a written statement that the judge upheld two other Woodbury laws the plaintiffs had challenged, one regulating religious structures and the other protecting ridge lines.

Read more at Record Online.

{Matzav.com Newscenter}