NEW YORK – A federal district court judge dismissed most of the claims brought by land developer Shalom Lam and others charging the Town of Mamakating, Village of Bloomingburg and some of their officials with discrimination against Hasidic Jews.
The complaint contained 15 causes of action alleging the defendants engaged in “pervasive, government-sponsored religious discrimination.”
The case is now down to two claims:
The plaintiffs’ allegations that the town inspected a building and issued a stop work order against construction of a mikvah, a ritual bath, and the town zoning board of appeals’ determination that a mikvah is not a permitted use at that location under the zoning code;
That the village adopted a temporary moratorium on the issuance of building permits and allegedly delayed issuing certificates of occupancy for the developer’s townhouse project.
Both claims relate to Lam’s real property.
“What remains with the town is a run of the mill zoning dispute,” said town attorney Brian Sokoloff.
