The state of California has filed a lawsuit against the city of Norwalk over its ordinance that bans homeless shelters and supporting housing in alleged violation of the state housing law, the California Attorney General’s Office announced Monday.
The lawsuit, filed in the Los Angeles County Superior Court, was no surprise as Gov. Gavin Newsom threatened a lawsuit in September.
The city defied that warning by extending the emergency ordinance, saying it hopes to conduct a further study on how prohibiting the types of facilities would impact the community and whether the city would need zoning amendments.
The state also stripped funding for housing and homelessness for the Los Angeles County city in October while accusing city officials of taking nearly $30 million in funds for homelessness and housing as it tried to prevent future shelters and transitioning housing.
“Despite receiving several warnings, the city of Norwalk has refused to repeal its unlawful ban on new supportive housing for our most vulnerable residents. Enough is enough,” said Attorney General Rob Bonta.
The lawsuit seeks to suspend the city’s nonresidential permitting authority and prohibit the city from denying affordable housing projects.
“The Norwalk City Council’s failure to reverse this ban, despite knowing it is unlawful, is inexcusable,” said Governor Gavin Newsom. “No community should turn its back on its residents in need.”
NBC Los Angeles reached out to Norwalk for a response.
In response to the initial threat from the Governor’s Office, the Norwalk City Council and Mayor Margarita Rios had lamented that the state was overlooking the city’s long-standing and effective efforts to address homelessness.
“Norwalk hosted one of the largest Project Roomkey sites during the pandemic,” Rios said in September. “Despite these efforts, Norwalk has received no Measure H funding, forcing the city to use its own resources to manage the fallout from abandoned state-mandated programs, which puts both residents’ safety and the city’s finances at risk.”
The state has taken similar action against other Southern California cities, including Anaheim and Huntington Beach. The two Orange County cities were forced to bring forward new housing plans after they lost lawsuits brought on by the state in similar fashion.
