A federal judge has blocked the Town of Johnston, Rhode Island, from taking control of a 31-acre property planned for affordable housing.
asserted
judge → block → housing
The judge ruled that town officials did not have the legal authority to seize the land.
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officials → rule → land
US District Judge Melissa R. DuBose overturned the town's decision to take the property near George Waterman Road.
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DuBose → overturn → Road
The ruling clears the way for the Santoro family and their development company, SCLS Realty LLC, to continue plans for a 252-unit housing complex.
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family → clear → complex
The decision ends a major legal dispute between town officials and property developers over land rights, local zoning rules and state requirements for affordable housing.
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decision → end → housing
The dispute began when the Santoro family submitted plans to build a large residential development on their 31-acre property.
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family → begin → property
Under Rhode Island law, developers can avoid certain local zoning restrictions if a town has less than 10 per cent of its housing classified as affordable.
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cent → avoid → housing
Johnston's affordable housing share stood at about 7.9 per cent.
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share → stand → cent
To stop the proposed development, the town government, led by Mayor Joseph Polisena Jr.
, moved to take the property through eminent domain.
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government → stop → domain
This legal power allows governments to acquire private land for public use under certain conditions.
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governments → allow → conditions
Town officials said the land was needed for a combined municipal complex that would include a new police headquarters, fire department headquarters and town hall.
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that → say → headquarters
In early 2025, the town filed the condemnation paperwork, deposited an appraisal amount of $775,000 in a state court registry and transferred the property's title to the municipality.
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town → file → municipality
According to legal filings in SCLS Realty, LLC v. Town of Johnston, documented in court records and reported by the Washington Examiner, town officials completed the transfer without notifying the owners beforehand.
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officials → accord → owners
The Santoro family learned that the property had been seized only after seeing an announcement posted by town officials on social media.
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property → learn → media
In March 2025, SCLS Realty LLC filed a federal lawsuit against the town.
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LLC → file → town
The company was represented by the Pacific Legal Foundation and local legal counsel.
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company → represent → Foundation
It argued that the seizure was unconstitutional and amounted to an unlawful taking of private property.
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seizure → argue → property
According to reports by Rhode Island Current and The Public's Radio, the lawsuit accused the town of creating its own condemnation process, breaking open meeting laws and claiming a public purpose to delay the housing project.
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lawsuit → accord → project
The Pacific Legal Foundation criticised the move as a "sham taking".
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Foundation → criticise → taking
The organisation argued that town officials had used their eminent domain powers to get around Rhode Island's affordable housing requirements.
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officials → argue → requirements
Mayor Joseph Polisena Jr. rejected claims that the town had acted in bad faith.
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town → reject → faith
Speaking to local media, he said the planned municipal complex was the main reason for the land acquisition.
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complex → speak → acquisition
"No, it's about building the complex," Polisena Jr. told The Public's Radio.
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Jr. → build → Radio
"I mean, that is the number one priority.
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that → mean → ?
I don't think there's anything more quintessential to a municipal government than providing public safety."
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I → think → safety
The Rhode Island Attorney General's office later reviewed the town's initial actions and found that the town council had violated the state's Open Meetings Act during its early votes on the land acquisition.
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council → review → acquisition
The council held another vote in March 2025 to approve the condemnation again.
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council → hold → condemnation
However, the developers continued with their federal lawsuit, seeking to overturn the seizure altogether.
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developers → continue → seizure
Court strikes down municipal overreach
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Court → strike → overreach
In a ruling issued by the US District Court for the District of Rhode Island, Judge Melissa R. DuBose sided with the developers and declared the town's seizure of the property invalid from the beginning.
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seizure → issue → beginning
The court found that Johnston officials had failed to follow the legal procedures required to use eminent domain.
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officials → find → domain
Judge DuBose ruled that local governments cannot create their own condemnation systems to avoid the legal protections that apply when private property is taken.
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property → rule → protections
The decision prevents the town from relying on the invalidated process to take control of the land.
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decision → prevent → land
"This ruling reins in the Town's obvious abuse of power and protects every American whose land a government might decide it wants," said Kady Valois, an attorney at the Pacific Legal Foundation, in a statement released after the court's decision.
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Valois → rein → decision
The court's ruling restores ownership of the 31-acre property to SCLS Realty LLC, allowing the Santoro family to move forward with its plans for the 252-unit housing development.
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family → restore → development
The decision could have wider effects across Rhode Island, where several towns have struggled to meet the state's requirement that at least 10 per cent of their housing stock be affordable.
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cent → have → stock
Legal experts working on land-use issues say the ruling shows that local councils cannot use land seizures to avoid state-backed housing requirements.
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councils → work → requirements
Johnston officials indicated after the ruling that they might consider other legal options concerning the property.
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they → indicate → property
However, the federal court's order prevents the town from interfering with the site through the eminent domain proceedings that have been declared invalid.
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that → prevent → proceedings
The future of the proposed housing complex will now depend on the next steps taken by the developers and any further lawful action pursued by the town.
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future → propose → town
The Aporia
