Family challenges California City’s unconstitutional zoning extortion

East Palo Alto, CA; August 1, 2025: Wesley Yu filed a federal lawsuit today challenging East Palo Alto’s inclusionary housing ordinance that forces property owners to surrender their land or pay steep fees just to build homes on their own property. The City is demanding Yu either dedicate a unit as “affordable housing” with permanent deed restrictions or pay $54,891 in fees to build a modest home and guest unit for his growing family.

“The government can’t hold building permits hostage and force families to choose between giving up control of their property or paying unconstitutional fees,” said David Deerson, an attorney with Pacific Legal Foundation. “Wesley just wants to build a home where his daughter can play safely and grandparents can visit comfortably—that’s the American Dream. Instead, they are facing government extortion.”

Yu and his wife live with their three-year-old daughter in a small, 1,000-square-foot home in East Palo Alto. They own an adjacent lot where they planned to build a new family home and detached accessory dwelling unit. Under the City’s ordinance, their two-unit project triggers requirements that would force them to rent to tenants they don’t want or pay nearly $55,000 in fees.

The lawsuit argues the ordinance violates constitutional property rights established in Supreme Court cases including Cedar Point v. Hassid and Nollan v. California Coastal Commission. The Yu family’s project would increase housing supply, not reduce it, yet the City demands mitigation as if the family were causing harm.

The case, Wesley Yu v. City of East Palo Alto, is the latest in PLF’s work protecting the right to build, so that property owners can create much-needed housing across the country.