Federal housing suit filed

Cathy Garber dreams of owning a mountain home with her fiance in Summit County. But now Garber fears the one thing she never expected may stand between her and that dream — her wheelchair.

"I want to choose where I live," said Garber, a 32-year-old Salt Lake resident with cerebral palsy. "This is America. I should be able to go where I choose to go. We want to have all the options available to us."

Those housing options for disabled and low-income Utahns are being cut short in Summit County, according to a federal lawsuit filed Monday by the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People and several state minority advocacy groups.

The suit, which comes a week after Gov. Jon Huntsman Jr. declared April as Fair Housing Month, seeks $40 million in damages and claims Summit County officials have created "discriminatory land uses" to limit affordable housing for minorities, the disabled population and limited-income citizens.

"What Summit County is doing is really putting together an elite enclave that is more white and less diverse than the rest of Utah and America," said Michael Hutchings, attorney for the coalition of minority groups, landowners and individuals bringing the suit.

The group is asking for a change in a zoning restriction in unincorporated county areas like the Snyderville Basin that limits density to one unit per 20 acres. That low density makes it nearly impossible for developers to build affordable low-income apartments, Hutchings said.

The zoning restriction also makes it hard for residents like Garber to find apartments that are required to have handicapped-accessible amenities like ramps and wider doors.

"Summit County has locked itself up and told us we are not welcome as persons with disabilities," said Jerry Costley, executive director of the plaintiff group Disabled Rights Action Committee. "Even if we had enough money, it would be hard to find accessibility. We just want Cathy to have a place to live."

But Summit County Commissioner Bob Richer said the plaintiffs in the case do not understand the county's zoning code. Many developments under way in the county include a substantial percentage of low-income housing, he said, with densities much higher than the base of one unit per 20-acre zone.

"Affordable housing is one of our top priorities," Richer said. "We're not aware of any deficiencies, but we'll certainly look into any allegations."

Calls to the Summit County attorney were not returned Monday.

Hutchings, however, does not believe county leaders have taken low-income housing seriously, even after a 1996 state statute requiring counties to establish an affordable housing plan. Summit County leaders are still working on theirs.