4.8 3. Denial of Special Use Permits and Variances Based Upon Unsupported Facts and Stereotypes 113

• Library: Disability Law and Practice, Vol. 3 (NY) 2017

3.. Denial of Special Use Permits and Variances Based Upon Unsupported Facts and Stereotypes

Many municipalities have zoning laws that limit the number of unrelated people who may live together as of right in a single dwelling unit. The denial of variances from the strict application of such zoning laws and the refusal to grant special use permits by municipalities have generated considerable litigation under the FHAA. In addition, some plaintiffs have asserted that it is discriminatory to require them to apply for variances and be subject to a public hearing process because they are the functional equivalent of a single family, which is not subject to public scrutiny prior to occupying a home.

Oxford House Inc., an organization that establishes self-run, self-supporting, and unlicensed group homes for individuals in recovery from substance abuse, has been the most ubiquitous plaintiff in this area. Unlike more traditional providers of housing for individuals in recovery, Oxford House has rented homes in middle-class communities and has done so without seeking permission from local authorities. They consider their households, which usually consist of six to ten adults, to be the functional equivalent of a family for zoning purposes. When these houses have been cited by municipalities for violating the zoning law, Oxford House generally has maintained the following:

1.. Such households should not be subjected to differential treatment...