Governor Kathy Hochul announced on September 2, 2026, the completion of Matinecock Court, a $98 million affordable housing development in the Town of Huntington, Suffolk County, that delivers 145 cooperative homes nearly half a century after the project was first proposed and blocked by local zoning. The development, built on a 14.5-acre parcel at the corner of Pulaski Road and Elwood Road in East Northport, stands as a physical resolution to one of the most consequential Fair Housing Act cases in American legal history, a dispute that reached the United States Supreme Court in 1988 and established precedent that continues to shape housing discrimination law.
Key Takeaways
- Matinecock Court includes 145 limited-equity cooperative homes across 17 two-story buildings, available to households earning up to 80% of the area median income.
- The project was first proposed in 1978 by Housing Help, Inc. and blocked by the Town of Huntington’s refusal to rezone the parcel from single-family residential use.
- The U.S. Supreme Court affirmed a Second Circuit ruling in 1988 (Town of Huntington v. Huntington Branch, NAACP, 488 U.S. 15) finding that Huntington’s zoning violated the Fair Housing Act through discriminatory impact, even without proof of discriminatory intent.
- The development reserves eight apartments for people with developmental disabilities, four for veterans, 15 for residents with mobility impairments, and six for residents with hearing or visual impairments.
- Financing includes more than $36 million in federal and state Low-Income Housing Tax Credit equity, $28 million in state subsidy, $4.2 million from Suffolk County, plus contributions from Empire State Development and the Office for People With Developmental Disabilities.
- Matinecock Court is part of Governor Hochul’s $25 billion five-year Housing Plan, which is on track to create or preserve 100,000 affordable homes statewide.
A Legal Fight That Went to the Supreme Court
The origins of Matinecock Court date to 1978, when Housing Help, Inc., a nonprofit housing advocacy organization, requested that the Town of Huntington rezone a 14.5-acre parcel in East Northport from single-family residential to multifamily use. The goal was to build federally subsidized housing in a neighborhood that, at the time, was 98% white. The Town of Huntington rejected the request with bipartisan support, citing concerns about the site’s proximity to a LIPA power substation, Long Island Rail Road tracks, and traffic congestion at the nearby intersection.
Housing Help, Inc. and the Huntington Branch of the NAACP filed suit in federal court, alleging that Huntington’s zoning laws violated the Fair Housing Act by confining multifamily housing to a small urban renewal area in Huntington Station where 52% of residents were members of minority groups. The Town of Huntington won at the district court level, but the Second Circuit Court of Appeals reversed the decision in 1988, finding that the zoning ordinance produced a racially discriminatory effect by restricting where affordable housing could be built. The court held that discriminatory impact alone, without any requirement to prove discriminatory intent, was sufficient to establish a Fair Housing Act violation.
The Town of Huntington appealed to the United States Supreme Court, which affirmed the Second Circuit’s ruling on November 7, 1988, in Town of Huntington v. Huntington Branch, NAACP (488 U.S. 15). The decision became a foundational precedent in fair housing law and a reference point for disparate impact claims under the Fair Housing Act nationwide. As the losing party, the Town of Huntington was also required to pay more than $926,000 in legal fees to Housing Help, Inc.
Decades of Community Opposition Followed the Court Ruling
The Supreme Court decision did not end the resistance. In 1989, the Town of Huntington rezoned the parcel to allow multifamily housing, capping the number of units at 210. But community opposition persisted through the following decades. A local organization called “Stop Matinecock Court” accumulated more than 1,500 members and maintained a sustained campaign against the development, arguing it was the wrong project in the wrong location. Additional rounds of permitting, environmental review, and infrastructure funding debates delayed construction for years. The Suffolk County Legislature approved infrastructure funding for the project, and ground clearing finally began in the early 2020s. D&F Development Group, in partnership with Housing Help, Inc., led the construction.
145 Cooperative Homes Near the Northport LIRR Station
The completed development consists of 17 two-story buildings offering one-, two-, and three-bedroom homes near the Northport Long Island Rail Road station, public transportation, schools, and community services. Matinecock Court uses a limited-equity cooperative structure, meaning residents purchase shares in the cooperative rather than individual units. Resale restrictions are built into the model to keep the homes affordable for future buyers, preventing the kind of market-rate appreciation that prices out the households the development was designed to serve.
The unit mix includes targeted accessibility and supportive housing provisions. Eight apartments are reserved for people with developmental disabilities who will receive services through the New York State Office for People With Developmental Disabilities. Four homes are set aside for veterans. Fifteen units are accessible to residents with mobility impairments, and six are designed for residents with hearing or visual impairments. New York State Homes and Community Renewal coordinated the financing package, which drew from federal and state Low-Income Housing Tax Credits (generating more than $36 million in equity), $28 million in state subsidy, $4.2 million from Suffolk County, $1.7 million from OPWDD, and $1 million from Empire State Development.
The Project Fits Into a Broader Statewide Housing Push
Matinecock Court is part of Governor Hochul’s $25 billion five-year Housing Plan, which the administration says is on track to create or preserve 100,000 affordable homes across New York State. New York State Homes and Community Renewal has financed more than 2,500 homes in Suffolk County in the past five years. The completion of Matinecock Court adds 145 units to that total in a county where housing affordability has become an increasingly pressing issue for working families, veterans, and individuals with disabilities.
Housing Help, Inc. Executive Director Pilar Moya-Mancera framed the opening in terms that acknowledged the weight of the project’s history. Moya-Mancera credited the founders and generations of leaders at Housing Help, Inc., the Huntington Branch NAACP, local residents, advocates, and attorneys who challenged exclusionary zoning and helped establish the Fair Housing Act precedent that ultimately made the development possible. After 48 years, the legal argument that began as a rezoning request in 1978 now has a physical address: 145 homes on the corner of Pulaski Road and Elwood Road in East Northport.
FAQs
What Is a Limited-Equity Cooperative?
A limited-equity cooperative is a housing model in which residents purchase shares in a cooperative corporation rather than owning individual units outright. Resale restrictions cap how much an owner can sell their shares for, keeping the homes affordable for future buyers and preventing market-rate price increases from displacing the households the development was built to serve.
What Was the Supreme Court Case Connected to Matinecock Court?
Town of Huntington v. Huntington Branch, NAACP (488 U.S. 15), decided on November 7, 1988, affirmed that the Town of Huntington’s zoning ordinance violated the Fair Housing Act by producing a racially discriminatory impact. The ruling established that discriminatory effect alone, without proof of discriminatory intent, is sufficient to prove a Fair Housing Act violation.
Who Developed Matinecock Court?
Matinecock Court was developed by D&F Development Group in partnership with Housing Help, Inc., the nonprofit organization that originally proposed the project in 1978 and led the decades-long legal fight to make it possible.
How Is Matinecock Court Funded?
The $98 million project was funded through a mix of federal and state Low-Income Housing Tax Credits (generating more than $36 million in equity), $28 million in state subsidy from New York State Homes and Community Renewal, $4.2 million from Suffolk County, $1.7 million from the Office for People With Developmental Disabilities, and $1 million from Empire State Development.
