By Dan Horn
The Cincinnati Enquirer

Former residents of the Huntington Meadows apartment complex asked a federal judge Tuesday to block redevelopment of the property.

The move came as Cincinnati City Council members prepared to vote today on a proposal to spend about $13 million to buy the Bond Hill property, demolish 58 buildings and hire two churches to develop the site.

The former residents have complained for more than a year that city officials forced them from their apartments to make way for more expensive, single-family homes.

They repeated many of those claims Tuesday in a federal lawsuit that accuses city officials of participating in a conspiracy to violate their civil rights.

"We want progress in this city," said Jennifer Kinsley, the residents' attorney. "What we are trying to stop is development on the backs of the residents evicted from this property."

Mayor Charlie Luken vowed the lawsuit would not halt progress on the project or interfere with council's vote today. "We will not be discouraged by frivolous lawsuits," Luken said.

The lawsuit claims city officials exaggerated safety and health risks at the property to drive away residents and then refused to work with a California developer who would have rehabilitated the existing apartments.

The suit seeks unspecified damages and asks U.S. District Judge Herman Weber to block any attempt to raze the site until the case is heard in court.

Although she is not named as a defendant, council member Alicia Reece is mentioned throughout the lawsuit as a leading advocate for redevelopment of the site. The suit suggests she has a conflict of interest because her father, Steve, owns property nearby.

"This lawsuit is baseless, false and ridiculous," Alicia Reece said. "It's an attempt to derail this project from moving forward."

Email dhorn@enquirer.com