JOHNSTON – The family-owned developer whose 31 acres of undeveloped land was seized by the town is speaking out after filing a lawsuit against the Town Council, which recently voted unanimously to confiscate it through eminent domain.
The Santoro family's federal lawsuit, filed March 10 in U.S. District Court in Providence, claims that the town unlawfully seized the property at 178-200 George Waterman Road without proper notification or following legal procedures, according to Kady Valois of Pacific Legal Foundation, who is representing the Santoros.
The Johnston Town Council voted 5-0 on Jan. 28 to seize the land from the property owners, which consists of Ralph Santoro, his wife Suzanne, his sister Lucille Santoro, and longtime friend Salvatore Compagnone.
The Santoros' lawsuit includes a temporary restraining order to stop acquisition of the land, which the town claims has already been seized. In fact, the developers said they were unaware of the land seizure until Mayor Joseph Polisena, Jr. announced it on social media on March 14, Valois said.
"When we found out that this land was being taken from us by eminent domain, it was like we were physically assaulted, like someone punched me in the gut," Ralph Santoro said during Wednesday's press conference. "I'm still traumatized by it. The last several weeks have been really stressful. We're hoping we can resolve this situation and move forward."
The town has since given them until March 21 to vacate the premises and threatened the developers with trespassing charges if they return, according to Valois.
"The Santoros have a right to their property until they have their day in court," Valois said on Wednesday. "But as of yesterday, the chance for our client's day in court was denied. The government has no right to take [this land]."
On Tuesday there were two separate court hearings on motions by the developers to the stop the town from taking the land by eminent domain.
The first one, in state Superior Court, was a request to temporarily stop the land taking. The court granted the motion, ordering the property to revert back to the owners pending the next state court hearing.
The second hearing, in federal court, granted the developer a 30-day temporary restraining order ensuring they can’t be charged with trespassing.
The developers were planning on using the land for a 252-unit unsubsidized affordable housing project but Polisena says t
he town plans to construct a public safety municipal complex on the site that will include a new fire department headquarters, police station and municipal hall.
“Our police officers and firefighters have endured unsafe and inadequate working conditions for far too long,” Polisena said in a statement in late January, when the Town Council voted in favor of the mayor’s plan to stop the developer's proposed affordable housing construction.
He said firefighters don’t have a fire alarm system or female bathrooms and showers. It wasn’t clear in January whether the mayor was referring to the fire department headquarters at 1520 Atwood Ave. or one or all of the town’s three other stations. He said firefighters are also dealing with a leaking roof, flooding dispatch room and living quarters that are “dangerously exposed” to toxic fumes.
Meanwhile, the Santoro family claims the land seizure was merely an underhanded way to stop such efforts towards affordable housing in Johnston. Mayor
Polisena has previously vocalized issues with bringing such projects to the town, citing resource issues amongst other things.
"We are still hoping to build some apartments in here that would better the community," he said. Ralph Santoro added that his parents purchased the land back in the 1980s. "We've been trying to construct apartment complexes on the property since that time."
Johnston officials and the mayor's office did not immediately respond to Providence Business News' request for comment.
(ADDS paragraphs 8-9 with results of court hearings.)
Matthew McNulty is a PBN staff writer. He can be reached at McNulty@PBN.com or on X at @MattMcNultyNYC.
