Pac. Shores Properties v. City of Newport Beach, No. 11-55460 (9th Cir. 2013)
Annotate this CaseAt issue in this case was the City's enactment of an ordinance which had the practical effect of prohibiting new group homes - i.e., homes in which recovering alcoholics and drug users live communally and mutually support each other's recovery - from opening in most residential zones. The court reversed the district court's dismissal of plaintiffs' disparate treatment claims; plaintiffs have created a triable fact that the ordinance was enacted in order to discriminate against them on the basis of disability, and that its enactment and enforcement harmed them; and the court reversed the district court's dismissal of all of plaintiffs' damages claims, except for its dismissal of Terri Bridgeman's claim for emotional distress.
Court Description: Housing Discrimination. The panel reversed the district court’s orders granting summary judgment in favor of the City of Newport on claims that a City ordinance violated the Fair Housing Act, the Americans with Disabilities Act, the California Fair Employment and Housing Act, and the Equal Protection Clause by having the practical effect of prohibiting new group homes for recovering alcoholics and drug users from opening in most residential zones. The panel held that the district court erred in disregarding the evidence that the City’s sole objective in enacting and enforcing its ordinance was to discriminate against persons deemed to be disabled under state and federal housing discrimination laws. The panel held that the plaintiffs were not required to identify similarly situated individuals who were treated better than themselves in order to survive summary judgment. It held that where there is direct or circumstantial evidence that the defendant has acted with a discriminatory purpose and has caused harm to members of a protected class, such evidence is sufficient to permit the protected individuals to proceed to trial under a disparate treatment theory. The panel also held that the district court erred in concluding that the plaintiffs failed to create a triable issue of fact as to whether the losses that their businesses suffered were caused by the enactment and enforcement of the ordinance when the plaintiffs presented evidence that they experienced a significant decline in business after the ordinance’s enactment, that the publicity surrounding the ordinance greatly reduced referrals, and that current and prospective residents expressed concern about whether the group-home plaintiffs would close. In addition, the panel held that the costs borne by the plaintiffs to present their permit applications and the costs spent assuring the public that they were still operating despite the City’s efforts to close them were compensable. Finally, the panel held that the district court erred in dismissing one plaintiff’s claim for emotional distress, but correctly dismissed another plaintiff’s similar claim.
The court issued a subsequent related opinion or order on March 4, 2014.
Some case metadata and case summaries were written with the help of AI, which can produce inaccuracies. You should read the full case before relying on it for legal research purposes.
This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.