Kansas Metropolis suburb’s ban on having greater than three roommates challenged in court docket

SHAWNEE, Ks. — A Kansas Metropolis suburb’s rule prohibiting greater than three unrelated roommates from residing collectively is being challenged in court docket.

A property administration firm that desires to have the ability to lease properties to a number of roommates and a house owner who stated that Shawnee’s ban made her residing association unlawful final yr as a result of her son’s girlfriend was residing with the household on the time filed the lawsuit, in accordance with the Kansas Metropolis Star.

The rule that Shawnee handed final yr prohibits greater than three unrelated individuals from residing collectively in a single residence. The one exception for extra individuals residing collectively is that if they’re all associated. If even one particular person in a house is not associated to everybody else within the family, town considers everybody within the family to be unrelated.

“As People, who we select to reside with is not one of the authorities’s enterprise,” David Deerson, legal professional at Pacific Authorized Basis, stated in a information launch. “There’s a critical housing affordability disaster and Shawnee is making it worse. This unconstitutional ordinance would even outlaw the residing association of tv’s ‘Golden Ladies.’ ”

Metropolis officers declined to touch upon the lawsuit and stated they haven’t but acquired a duplicate of it.

However when Shawnee authorised the ban final yr, officers stated they had been making an attempt to get rid of conditions the place householders had been treating their properties like residence buildings and renting rooms to a number of individuals.

Critics of the ban stated the rule simply made it more durable for individuals to afford to reside within the upscale suburb.

The corporate that filed the lawsuit, HomeRoom Inc., stated it tries to make housing extra inexpensive by renting properties to individuals who wish to be roommates. After the ban handed, the corporate stated it needed to evict a few of its tenants on the two properties it owns in Shawnee.