Dive Brief:
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The parents of a 9-year-old baseball player have sued a local Little League for moving the boy to a lower division in retaliation for their effort to build affordable housing in wealthy Darien, CT, the civil lawsuit said.
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Builders Christopher and Margaret Stefanoni have engaged in legal and regulatory battles with the city since 2006, when they applied to build an affordable housing complex along the shoreline of the community, whose 21,000 residents are 94% white. Since then, the couple has proposed building two other affordable apartment buildings.
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City leaders have denied the Stefanonis’ accusation that they are trying to keep lower-income and minority tenants out of Darien, where the per-capita income is approximately $95,000.
Dive Insight:
The city has spent almost $200,000 defending itself against the Stephanonis’ various lawsuits, but officials have said they will not approve the builders’ projects because of concerns over traffic safety.
In 2010, the city won an exemption to a state law that made it easier for developers to build in areas with less than 10% affordable housing.