Court strikes down public housing ruling Decision seen as win for residents in Far N. Dallas

The Dallas Morning News
Craig Flournoy

03/17/1999

(Copyright 1999)

A federal appeals court on Tuesday struck down a landmark ruling calling for the construction of 474 public housing apartments in predominantly white areas of Dallas and its suburbs.

The long-awaited ruling represents a significant victory for 1,000 homeowners in Far North Dallas. In 1996, they sued the Dallas Housing Authority to prevent it from building two public housing projects in their area.

The order suggests that housing authority officials rely on vouchers and certificates to achieve desegregation. Poor families can use these to rent private apartments.

Both sides agreed that the unanimous decision by a three-judge panel of the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in New Orleans is significant. "This is a landmark ruling that will have an impact in any remedial order - be it desegregation of housing or any other area - that relies on a race-based remedy," said attorney Tom Melsheimer , who represents homeowners in the Preston Highlands and Highlands of McKamy neighborhoods. "It is clearly a big victory for the homeowner groups and an important step in the direction of a colorblind society." Mike Daniel, an attorney representing the seven poor black women whose lawsuit led to the court-ordered projects, said his clients would appeal the decision to the U.S. Supreme Court. That appeal must be filed within 90 days.

Mr. Daniel, who has represented the plaintiffs in the housing desegregation lawsuit known as the Walker case for 14 years, called Tuesday's decision a "pretty radical ruling."

"When race has been used to segregate people, then in order to reverse that social engineering you have to use race to bring about desegregation," he said.

The 5th Circuit disagreed. As a result, it ordered the housing authority not to proceed with its plans to build two 40-unit public housing developments until U.S. District Judge Jerry Buchmeyer holds additional hearings.

Lori Moon, the housing authority's president and chief executive officer, said Tuesday that she would reserve comment until she had an opportunity to review the 36-page decision. But she emphasized that her agency remains committed to building public housing in white neighborhoods as part of its desegregation plans.

"Our position has not changed," she said. "We continue to believe that a balanced approach is the best approach, one that includes some public housing and some Section 8" certificates and vouchers. Jacob Cherner, a member of the Preston Highlands Homeowners Association, said he was excited by the decision.

"We've seen how the Dallas Housing Authority has built, managed and maintained its other properties, and we're not impressed," he said. But, he stressed, "We would welcome them {low-income} families into our neighborhoods" if a voucher system is instituted.

Mr. Cherner expressed optimism that the U.S. Supreme Court would back the 5th Circuit Court's ruling. "From my perspective, it's just like the Hopwood case," he said, citing a Texas case in which the U.S. Supreme Court deemed race-based student selection criteria at the University of Texas unconstitutional.

"This is race-based site selection, with a judge telling the housing authority to build in neighborhoods that are predominantly white," Mr. Cherner said.

DHA officials planned to build one project on a 4.8-acre site at the northeast corner of Meandering Way and McCallum Boulevard and the other on an 8.8-acre site east of Hillcrest Road and a half-mile north of Frankford Road.

Tuesday's decision was the latest action in an unprecedented desegregation lawsuit.

In 1995, Judge Buchmeyer ordered the housing authority to provide housing for more than 3,000 poor families in predominantly white, middle-class areas of Dallas and its suburbs. The judge issued the order after finding that government officials had forced thousands of low-income, minority families to live in taxpayer-supported slums for decades.

The most controversial aspect of the judge's order required that the housing authority provide 474 new public housing apartments in mostly white neighborhoods.

DHA officials first selected a site at Marsh Lane and Frankford Road. That sparked a legal challenge from hundreds of homeowners, albeit an unsuccessful one. The housing authority opened the $4.9 million complex in May 1998. Neighborhood groups have largely embraced the development. In April 1996, the housing authority announced that it had selected the Meandering Way and Hillcrest Road sites. That prompted the two homeowner associations to file suit in federal court.

They asked Judge Buchmeyer to prohibit the DHA from building public housing in their neighborhoods. They argued that the judge's desegregation order was unconstitutional because it is a "race- conscious remedy." They also said public housing would destroy property values.

Judge Buchmeyer did not agree. In August 1997, he upheld his sweeping 1995 desegregation ruling and ordered the housing authority to proceed with construction of the two controversial public housing projects. That ruling prompted the homeowner groups to appeal to the 5th Circuit. In October 1997, the appeals court agreed to temporarily block construction. The appeals panel listened to arguments from both sides in January 1998. The judges took 15 months to issue a decision. Both sides agreed that Tuesday's decision does not prohibit the housing authority from building public housing in white neighborhoods. But justifying public housing in white areas will be difficult, said homeowners' attorney Melsheimer.

"If the housing authority insists on using something other than vouchers, it will face a heavy burden of proof," he said. Ginger Lee, another member of the Preston Highlands Homeowners Association, said she was pleased with Tuesday's ruling but realizes it is not the final judgment.

"This is temporary," she said. "It's not the final deal." Staff writer Joy Dickinson contributed to this report.