Plaintiff owned and operated a building on North Milwaukee Avenue in Chicago in which Double Door Liquors, a music venue, had been a tenant. After it was evicted, a zoning ordinance was enacted that changed the types of businesses allowed in the building. Plaintiffs challenged the ordinance and certain acts done by the local alderman and the City before ordinance was enacted, alleging these were done to punish Plaintiff for having evicted Double Door. The secondary effects of having a concert venue at the location (noise, drug use property damage by patrons, etc.) provided a rational basis to downzone the property via this ordinance, and thus Plaintiff's substantive due process claim and equal protection claim were property dismissed. Plaintiff alleged mere fluctuations in value from the rezoning, which did not so burden his property and were not so severe an economic impact as to constitute a taking. City met its burden of proving that it si immune under sections 2-201 and 2-109 of Tort Immunity Act, and thus Plaintiff's tort claims were properly dismissed. (HARRIS and ODEN JOHNSON, concurring.)
Illinois Appellate Court
Civil Court
Ordinances