The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) has reached a $22,500 settlement agreement with the owner and managers of Cheyenne Villa Apartments, a 56-unit, HUD-assisted townhome complex in Sydney, Neb.
The settlement resolves a complaint filed by a resident who uses a wheelchair and walker, who alleged that the Cheyenne Villa Apartments' management failed to accommodate her request to transfer to the first available ground-floor unit. The resident alleged that she suffered significant injuries while negotiating the stairs to reach her bedroom and bathroom.
Months later, when the resident transferred to a unit on the ground floor bedroom, she alleged the apartment complex's management continued to refuse her repeated requests for a ramp to ease access to her unit, a parking space for her handicapped-accessible van, and an accessible route from the parking lot to her unit. The resident eventually moved from the property.
‘Persons with disabilities aren't asking for special treatment when they request reasonable accommodations,’ says John Trasvina, HUD's assistant secretary for fair housing and equal opportunity. ‘Ground-floor rooms, designated parking spaces, and ramps may be necessary for persons with disabilities to conduct everyday activities and gain independence in their daily living. HUD is committed to ensuring that housing providers, federally assisted and otherwise, live up to their obligation to grant reasonable accommodations to people with disabilities when they are needed.’
