On April 22, 2005, a federal court in Chicago, Illinois, approved a consent decree reached by the Department with the owner and manager of the Chateau Village Apartments in Carol Stream, Illinois. The agreement resolved a lawsuit previously filed by the Department,which alleged that the owner, management company, and property manager of the apartment complex had violated the Fair Housing Act. In particular, the Department maintained that the defendants refused to make a reasonable accommodation to allow a disabled resident to move from a one-bedroom unit to a two-bedroom unit that had both fewer steps and more room for her therapeutic equipment.

Under the settlement agreement, the apartment owners will pay $33,000 to the former resident and $4,500 to the HOPE Fair Housing Center. The owners have also agreed to adopt a reasonable accommodation policy and obtain fair housing training.

On May 16, 2005, a federal court in Newark, New Jersey, approved a consent decree resolving the Department’s lawsuit in regards to the Bayview Condominium Association in Highlands, New Jersey. The lawsuit, which was filed against the Association, the president of the Association’s Board of Trustees, the management company, and an employee of the management company, alleged that the defendants refused to make a reasonable accommodation to allow a disabled owner/resident to install a clothes washer and dryer in her condominium. The Department maintained that this individual needed the requested appliances because her disabilities, which include carpal tunnel syndrome and asthma, prevent her from regularly carrying loads of laundry to the common laundry room located on the ground floor.

The settlement agreement will require the defendants to permit the installation of the appliances by a licensed plumber in compliance with all applicable codes and industry standards. It also will require the defendants to adopt and implement a reasonable accommodation policy, undergo training, and pay the resident $2,000 in monetary damages.