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CUPON Lawsuit Against Village of Chestnut Ridge Dismissed

CUPON Lawsuit Against Village of Chestnut Ridge Dismissed

by M. C. Millman

The Federal Southern District of New York granted the Village of Chestnut Ridge's motion to dismiss the Citizens United to Protect Our Neighborhoods (CUPON) federal lawsuit.

CUPON brought the lawsuit along with Chestnut Ridge residents Hilda Kogut, Robert Asselbergs, and Carole Goodman on April 18, 2019. The lawsuit challenged the Village of Chestnut Ridge's house of worship zoning law enacted in 2019 as unconstitutional,

The House of Warship Law allowed, for the first time, residents of Chestnut Ridge to open houses of warship in the neighborhood and in the lawsuit against it CUPON claimed it favored only the Orthodox Jewish Coalition.

"The Village Board is pleased with the Federal Court's thorough review of its actions and the decision to dismiss the case," Village Mayor Rosario "Sam" Presti stated. "The Village will continue to act in the best interests of all of its residents, no matter how difficult the issue."

Village Special Counsel, Alak Shah of Feerick Nugent MacCartney, stated "The Village, in an effort to bridge the diverging views of its constituents on their preferred exercise of Religious Rights, consulted experts and professionals to enact its House of Worship Law to provide a legal and regulated path for Village residents to exercise those Constitutionally protected Religious Rights."

The Village of Chestnut Ridge's motion to dismiss CUPON's lawsuit for lack of standing, as well as other reasons, was granted by District Judge Nelson Roman. In a twenty-page brief released today, the judge announced his decision to grant the motion to dismiss the lawsuit, finding that the petitioners (CUPON) did not have the standing to challenge the law.

"Today's court decision is a victory for the Village of Chestnut Ridge and dismisses the Federal court case brought against the village by CUPON," Trustee Chaim Rose and Trustee Shmuli Fromovitz shared with Rockland Daily. "The House of Worship law (HOW) enacted in 2019 created a legal mechanism to build a shul or other HOWs with the proper oversight and public hearings.

"Prior to the passing of the HOW law, there was no practical way to build a shul or any other type of HOW in a residential neighborhood. Since the enactment of the 2019 law, there have been three shul approvals thus far. The village anticipates the submission of additional HOW applications in the years to come. Chestnut Ridge is a growing and vibrant community with leadership that truly goes above and beyond for all of its residents."


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