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The lawsuit alleges the Auburn Planning Board "erroneously found" that an environmental impact statement was not required for the project and did not comply with the city's code when it approved a "defective" site plan. 

The plaintiffs, which include Prospect Pointe Apartments and more than 30 residents who own property or live near the proposed site, argue that the planning board should have issued a positive declaration — a move that would've required an environmental impact statement to be completed. 

Auburn attorney Joe Camardo, who is representing the plaintiffs, also raises questions about the site plan approval process. He notes that the site plan review application was signed by Housing Visions, a Syracuse-based developer, but not Chapel House, which owns the existing shelter at 290-292 Grant Ave. 

The planning board approved the site plan by a 3-1 vote on July 2. However, Camardo contends one member had a "serious conflict of interest." 

Amy Sargent, one of the five planning board members, voted in favor of the resolutions at the meeting. Camardo alleges that at the time of the vote, Sargent was the chair of the Cayuga Community Health Network's board of directors — an organization that oversees a street outreach program to assist homeless individuals. 

"As chairman of CCHN, Ms. Sargent has a vested interest into seeing that the resolutions were passed," Camardo wrote in the complaint. "The planning board's approval of the project would result in CCHN obtaining more referrals and more funding." 

According to the Cayuga Community Health Network's website, Sargent is no longer chair or a member of the board. 

The city of Auburn, the planning board, Housing Visions, Chapel House and Brian Hicks, the city's senior code enforcement officer, are listed as defendants. The city has not yet responded to the lawsuit.

Court filings show Nathan Garland, the city's corporation counsel, requested an extension to provide an answer. An appearance date has been set for Oct. 24. 

Camardo and Garland declined to comment on the lawsuit. 

The proposed 80-bed homeless shelter would replace an existing 16-bed facility on Grant Avenue. The Cayuga County Legislature voted in October 2023 to provide $1 million in federal COVID-19 relief funds for the project. 

Proponents of the shelter say it's necessary to address rising homelessness in Cayuga County. In 2023, the county paid $3 million to house homeless individuals in hotels. 

Amid opposition to the proposed shelter, Housing Visions sought a different location. The former Holy Family School at 85-93 North St. was identified as a possible site, but the Auburn Zoning Board of Appeals rejected the developer's request for a use variance that would've allowed it to construct the shelter there.

Housing Visions revised its site plan and submitted it to the Auburn Planning Board for review. Another public hearing was held before the board voted on July 2 to approve the site plan. 

The lawsuit asks the court to annul to planning board's approval of the site plan and the negative declaration that was issued for the project. The plaintiffs are also seeking court action to prevent the city's code enforcement officer from issuing building or zoning permits to Housing Visions, as well as preventing the developer from beginning construction on the shelter.