McKenzie v. City of Chicago

175 F.R.D. 280, 1997 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 11553, 1997 WL 522788
District Court, N.D. Illinois·Decided July 31, 1997·No. No. 97 C 284·Published·Cited by 7 cases

Opinion

MEMORANDUM OPINION AND ORDER

CASTILLO, District Judge.

PROCEDURAL HISTORY AND BACKGROUND

Today, this Court issues a trilogy of decisions involving the City of Chicago’s Fast Track Demolition program. Today’s three opinions1 bring our total opinions in this dispute to five, for consolidated litigation which has been pending less than seven months. Thus, this Court has decided that these related eases are appropriately entitled the “fast-track” litigation. The Court candidly admits that this is one of few lawsuits that has moved faster than this Court’s preferences would dictate. After the McKenzie plaintiffs’ amended complaint was consolidated with the related complaint in McCullough v. City of Chicago, 971 F.Supp. 1247 (1997), on March 7, 1997, this Court set a schedule to address the City defendants’ planned motion to dismiss. However, before the City defendants filed their motion to dismiss on April 28, 1997, a motion which we resolve today2 the McKenzie plaintiffs filed a motion for a preliminary injunction. After the parties failed to reach a standstill agreement to allow the Court time to resolve the City defendants’ motion to dismiss, this Court decided to give the required priority to the resolution of the plaintiffs’ requested injunctive relief. The Court therefore held an expedited evidentiary hearing on plaintiffs’ motion for a preliminary injunction on April 2, 1997. That motion was fully briefed on April 9, 1997. Thereafter, on April 28, 1997, this Court orally granted the plaintiffs’ motion for a temporary restraining order and subsequently issued a lengthy opinion on May 5, 1997 granting the plaintiffs’ motion for preliminary injunction. See McKenzie v. City of Chicago, 964 F.Supp. 1183 (N.D.Ill. 1997).

During this same time period the Court was attempting to deal with the plaintiffs’ motion for class certification which had been filed on March 24, 1997, and which became fully briefed, after discovery, on May 5, 1997 — the same day the Court issued its initial preliminary injunction opinion. The Court planned to work on the motion for class certification, which is resolved in the body of this opinion, immediately after the release of the preliminary injunction opinion. Instead, the Court’s energies and attention were diverted to an emergency motion by the defendants, which was filed on May 7, 1997, to reconsider or, alternatively, to stay this Court’s preliminary injunction order pending appeal. Because the defendants supported this motion with new evidence filed for the first time in their reply brief, this “emergency” motion was not fully briefed until June 20, 1997. The motion was denied by this Court in a memorandum opinion dated June 24, 1997. See McKenzie v. City of Chicago, 968 F.Supp. 1268 (N.D.Ill.1997).

The Court’s denial of the stay was appealed by the City defendants to the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals, and in true adherence to the “fast track” nature of this litigation the Seventh Circuit summarily reversed this Court’s preliminary injunction decision a [283]*283mere five days after the case was fully briefed on the limited issue of a potential appellate stay. See McKenzie v. City of Chicago, 118 F.3d 552 (7th Cir.1997).

With this procedural history as background, this opinion resolves the issue of class certification, which we previously imprudently deferred.

RELEVANT FACTS

When evaluating a motion for class certification, the Court accepts all well-pled allegations made in support of certification as true. Hardin v. Harshbarger, 814 F.Supp. 703, 706 (N.D.Ill.1993). The following facts are drawn largely from the allegations of the complaint, supplemented occasionally by the evidence presented to the Court to date.

In this action, the plaintiffs challenge the City of Chicago’s practices and procedures for implementing a state statute, 65 ILCS 5/ll-31-l(e), and a city ordinance, Chi. Mun. Code § 13-9-010 (collectively, “the Ordinance”), which permit summary demolition under certain circumstances. The first four counts of the Amended Complaint are brought on behalf of those who have already been injured by the City’s enforcement of the Ordinance. Count I is a claim under 42 U.S.C. § 1983 for the deprivation of property without due process. Count II alleges violations of state and city law — specifically, the Ordinance. Counts III and IV are common law trespass and conversion claims, respectively. Each of these counts seeks compensatory and punitive damages, and injunctive relief. The last count, Count V, is brought on behalf of the above plaintiffs and also on behalf of those who may be injured in the future by the City’s procedures and practices. Count V seeks a declaration that the Ordinance is invalid as written and implemented, and injunctive relief. The plaintiffs’ motion to certify these two classes is presently before the Court.

The plaintiffs all own or owned property within the City of Chicago. All of them have either had the buildings on those properties demolished through the Fast Track Demolition program operated by the City of Chicago, or have buildings that are currently on the City’s list for pending demolitions through the same program. The individual named defendants are all City employees in the Building Department or the Fast Track Demolition program. John Does 1 through 10 are the other, as-yet-unidentified employees who carry out the Fast Track program. John Does 11 through 20 are non-employees with whom the City contracts to carry out demolitions or other business in furtherance of the Fast Track program.

The Fast Track Demolition program is operated under the auspices of the Ordinance. Under the Ordinance, a building may be summarily demolished if it is “a residential building ... 2 stories or less in height ..., and the corporate official designated to be in charge of enforcing the municipality’s building code determines that the building is open and vacant and an immediate and continuing hazard to the community in which the building is located.” 65 ILCS 511 — 31—1(e). The Ordinance requires the municipality to provide three forms of notice of its intent to demolish the building: the posting of a sign not less than two feet by two feet on the building; the mailing of letters to all record owners, beneficial owners of land trusts, and lienholders of record, by certified mail, return receipt requested; and the publication for three consecutive days of a notice in the newspaper. These notices must state that the municipality intends to “demolish, repair, or enclose the building, or remove any garbage, debris, or other hazardous, noxious or unhealthy substances” unless the owner does so himself within 30 days. 65 ILCS 5/11 — 31— 1(e); Chi. Mun.Code § 13-9-010. Thirty days after the date of the last notice, the municipality may proceed with demolition. Afterward, the municipality may file a lien against the property for costs and expenses related to the demolition. Id. The municipality may then move to foreclose on the property if necessary to enforce the lien.

Free access — add to your briefcase to read the full text and ask questions with AI

McKenzie v. City of Chicago, 175 F.R.D. 280, 1997 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 11553, 1997 WL 522788 (N.D. Ill. 1997).

175 F.R.D. 280 (McKenzie v. City of Chicago) — published by Counsel Stack Legal Research, free access to 12M+ legal documents.

Related

Pope v. Harvard Bancshares, Inc.
240 F.R.D. 383 (N.D. Illinois, 2006)
Robledo v. City of Chicago
444 F. Supp. 2d 895 (N.D. Illinois, 2006)
Hyderi v. Washington Mutual Bank, FA
235 F.R.D. 390 (N.D. Illinois, 2006)
Blihovde v. St. Croix County
219 F.R.D. 607 (W.D. Wisconsin, 2003)
Wiley v. Mason (In Re Wiley)
224 B.R. 58 (N.D. Illinois, 1998)
Tylka v. Gerber Products Co.
178 F.R.D. 493 (N.D. Illinois, 1998)
McCullough v. City of Chicago
971 F. Supp. 1247 (N.D. Illinois, 1997)