1. This action is brought by the United States to enforce
Title VIII of the Civil Rights Act of 1968, as amended by the
Fair Housing Amendments Act of 1988, 42 U.S.C. §§3601, et seq.
(the "Fair Housing Act").
2. The Court has jurisdiction over this action pursuant to
28 U.S.C. §§1331 and 1345 and 42 U.S.C. §3614(a).
3. Defendant City of Agawam (the "City") is a political
subdivision of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, located within
the District of Massachusetts, Western Division. The City is
governed by a Mayor and an elected City Council, which is
comprised of eleven at-large Councilors.
4. The Agawam Board of Appeals is elected by the City
Council. The Board hears appeals of actions involving the City's
building code and zoning ordinances.
5. Larry Hoague and Doreen Prouty were members of the Board
of Appeals at all times relevant to this action. Each resides in
the District of Massachusetts, Western Division.
6. According to the 2000 Census, of Agawam's 28,144
residents, 97.3% are White, while fewer than 1% are Black and
1.8% are Hispanic.
7. C & E Tobacco, Inc. ("C & E") is a licensed agricultural concern conducting business in Massachusetts and Connecticut. C & E employs approximately 60 workers annually in the harvesting of broad leaf tobacco.
8. C & E participates in a federally-regulated guest-worker program, known as the "H-2A Program," which was designed to aid United States farmers in filling temporary labor shortages, pursuant to 8 U.S.C. §1101(a)(15)(H)(ii), §1188 and 20 C.F.R. §655.0 et seq.
9. Beginning in 1998, C & E leased three adjacent parcels
of agricultural land on North West Street in Agawam and secured a
contract to purchase the central portion of this land for the
purpose of harvesting tobacco. In 1999, C & E's President,
Calvin Arnold, Jr., formed a Massachusetts Limited Liability
Corporation, "CJA III," and transferred C & E's real estate
holdings to CJA III.
10. C & E is required to provide housing for its seasonal non-local farm laborers pursuant to 20 C.F.R. §655.102. C & E currently houses its non-local farm employees at two labor residences located in West Suffield, Connecticut and one in
Enfield, Connecticut. C & E pays approximately $14,000 per year
to rent the Enfield housing facility for its workers. During the
harvest season, the farm workers residing in Enfield, spend
approximately one and one-half to two hours per day round-trip
commuting by bus between their Connecticut housing to C & E's
Agawam farm. C & E does not pay the workers for the time they
spend commuting each day to or from C & E's Agawam property.
11. For the past six years, all of C & E's seasonal non-local farm workers who have required grower-provided housing have been Black Jamaican or Hispanic Puerto Rican men.
12. On January 29, 2001, C & E submitted a Site Plan and an Application for Site Plan Approval to the Agawam Planning Board. The Application proposed to build a residence for approximately 27 seasonal farm workers and a maintenance building for farm equipment on the North West Street tobacco farm.
13. The proposed farm labor residence is a "dwelling"
within the meaning of 42 U.S.C. §3602(b).
14. Various City officials, including the Agawam Building
Inspector/Zoning Officer, the Mayor of Agawam and the City
Solicitor, directly participated in the process of reviewing and
recommending changes to the C & E proposal during the Site Plan
Application process. C & E responded to each suggested
recommendation, modifying the Site Plan according to the
officials' suggestions.
15. On April 19, 2001, the Agawam Planning Board voted
unanimously to approve the C & E Site Plan, conditioned upon
receipt of a letter from the Agawam Building Inspector indicating
whether the proposed uses are "allowed uses" under the Agawam
Code and applicable state law.
16. On or about June 5, 2001, the City of Agawam Law
Department issued a Memorandum in response to a request from the
Agawam Mayor and the Agawam Building Inspector/Zoning Officer.
The Memorandum declared that C & E's Plan to build housing for
seasonal farm workers was not an allowed or permitted use under
the Town of Agawam zoning ordinances.
17. On or about July 23, 2001, after numerous public
hearings in the matter during which White Agawam residents
expressed strong opposition to the housing Site Plan, the Agawam
Board of Appeals, by unanimous vote, reversed the decision of the
Agawam Planning Board.
18. The Defendants opposed the proposed housing Site Plan
because of local residents' opposition to the housing based on
concerns that the housing would be occupied by Black Jamaican and
Hispanic Puerto Rican workers.
19. Because of the Defendants' opposition to the C & E farm worker housing Site Plan, C & E has not built a residence and will therefore be required to continue renting housing facilities for its farm workers in Connecticut during the 2002 growing season and transporting them daily, unless the Defendants' actions are reversed.
20. The above-stated actions of the Defendants have made
dwellings unavailable to persons because of race, color and
national origin, in violation of 42 U.S.C. §3604(a).
21. The Defendants' conduct as stated above constitutes a
denial of Fair Housing Act rights to a group of persons, which
denial raises an issue of general public importance in violation
of 42 U.S.C. §3614(a).
22. C & E and the prospective residents of its planned
housing have been injured by Defendants' discriminatory housing
practices. Such persons are aggrieved persons as defined in 42
U.S.C. §3602(i).
23. Defendants' conduct was intentional, willful, and taken
in reckless disregard of the rights of others.
1. Declares that the actions of the Defendants described
herein constitute a violation of the Fair Housing Act, pursuant
to 42 U.S.C. §3614(d)(1)(B), and 28 U.S.C. §2201;
2. Enjoins the Defendants, their officials, agents,
employees, and all other persons acting in concert or
participation with the Defendants from discriminating on the
basis of race, color and national origin in violation of the Fair
Housing Act, pursuant to 42 U.S.C. §3614(d)(1)(A);
3. Requires the Defendants to take such affirmative steps
as may be necessary to prevent the recurrence of any
discriminatory housing practices in the future and to eliminate
the effects of Defendants' unlawful practices described herein,
pursuant to 42 U.S.C. §3614(d)(1)(A);
4. Awards such damages as would fully compensate each
person aggrieved by Defendants' discriminatory housing practices,
pursuant to 42 U.S.C. §3614(d)(1)(B);
5. Awards each person aggrieved by Defendants'
discriminatory housing practices punitive damages, pursuant to 42
U.S.C. §3614(d)(1)(B); and
6. Assesses a civil penalty against the Defendants to
vindicate the public interest, pursuant to 42 U.S.C.
§3614(d)(1)(C).
The United States further prays for such additional relief
as the interests of justice may require.
