Arlington Heights v. Metropolitan Housing Corp. - Significance, Residential Zoning In Arlington Heights, Intent Versus Effect, Impact, Further Readings

decision court petitioner william

Petitioner

The Village of Arlington Heights, Illinois

Respondent

Metropolitan Housing Development Corporation and several individual residents

Petitioner's Claim

That a decision to deny rezoning on land owned by Metropolitan Housing Development Corporation was not racially motivated in violation of the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment and conformed to the 1968 Fair Housing Act.

Chief Lawyer for Petitioner

F. Willis Caruso

Chief Lawyer for Respondent

Jack M. Siegel

Justices for the Court

Harry A. Blackmun, Warren E. Burger, Lewis F. Powell, Jr. (writing for the Court), William H. Rehnquist, Potter Stewart

Justices Dissenting

William J. Brennan, Jr., Thurgood Marshall, Byron R. White (John Paul Stevens did not participate)

Place

Washington, D.C.

Date of Decision

11 January 1977

Decision

Ruled in favor of Arlington Heights by reversing a lower court decision and refusing to issue an injunction against a rezoning decision, but sent the case back to the lower courts for further deliberation.

Related Cases

Euclid v. Ambler Realty Co., 272 U.S. 365 (1926).
Washington v. Davis, 426 U.S. 229 (1976).

Additional Topics

Arlington Heights v. Metropolitan Housing Corp. - Significance

The case established a key standard for determining when the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment was violated due to racial discrimination in housing. The simple fact that a decision may result in unequal effects on different racial groups was not sufficient evidence to prove racial discrimination. Those contesting an action on such grounds must also prove an intent to discriminate…

Arlington Heights v. Metropolitan Housing Corp. - Residential Zoning In Arlington Heights

Arlington Heights, a suburb of Chicago, is located approximately 25 miles northwest of the city's downtown area. Most land in the community was zoned for detached single family homes. During the 1960s, the community saw substantial growth while the population of racial minorities remained low, similar to other communities in northwest Cook County. Near the center of Arlington Heights, a religious …

Arlington Heights v. Metropolitan Housing Corp. - Intent Versus Effect

Arlington Heights then appealed to the Supreme Court which accepted the case. Justice Powell, writing for the 5-3 majority, could find no evidence the denial was racially motivated. Instead, Powell, agreeing with the district court's decision, found substantial evidence indicating the zoning decision was primarily prompted by a desire to protect property values and to preserve the zoning plan's in…

Arlington Heights v. Metropolitan Housing Corp. - Impact

Ruling in favor of Metropolitan, the appeals court in July of 1977 ruled that the refusal to rezone violated the Fair Housing Act because the effect was discriminatory even though there may have been no intent. The court held that actions predictably perpetuating racial discrimination were as harmful as intentional discrimination. Besides, the goal of the Fair Housing Act was to racially integrate…

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