The City of Clovis is being sued for its lack of affordable housing. A lawsuit filed in Fresno County Superior Court Wednesday alleged that the city isn’t in compliance with state housing law, and is discriminating against low-income people by not planning for high density housing.
“What we’ve ended up hearing from them at city council meetings is, ‘We don’t want to do that, can’t we be more like Bel Air and Beverly Hills.’ That’s what one councilmember said,” says Patience Milrod, citing an instance the complaint says occurred in October of 2018. “There’s just really no willingness to follow the law.”
Milrod is executive director of Central California Legal Services. Her firm is representing plaintiff Desiree Martinez in the lawsuit.
The City of Clovis has 30 days to respond to the suit. In a e-mailed statement to Valley Public Radio, Mayor Drew Bessinger says the city is in full compliance with affordable housing regulations.
