Fair Housing Groups Join Disability Discrimination Lawsuit Against Major Rental Apartment Provider
On November 30, three fair housing organizations — the Fair Housing Partnership of Greater Pittsburgh, Inc. (FHP), Housing Equality Center of Pennsylvania (HECP), and the National Fair Housing Alliance — moved to intervene in a U.S. Department of Justice lawsuit against AION Management, which manages multiple multi-family apartment rental communities in the mid-Atlantic and Midwest regions, and several affiliated entities (collectively, “AION”), asserting that the defendants violated the federal Fair Housing Act by discriminating against persons with disabilities who require assigned parking as a reasonable accommodation to access their homes.
The lawsuit stems from a year-long investigation initiated by FHP in 2020 and expanded with the assistance of HECP and NFHA. As alleged in the groups’ proposed complaint-in-intervention, the investigation found that multiple AION properties in Pennsylvania and Delaware refused to grant reasonable accommodations in the form of assigned parking spaces, or to waive a “first come, first serve” or similar parking policy, for persons with a disability-related need.
Having an accessible parking space is a critical necessity for residents with disabilities so they can have the same access to their homes as residents without disabilities. Under longstanding federal guidance, housing providers with a policy of providing unassigned parking spaces to residents, like AION’s, must make an exception to that policy for a resident with a mobility-related disability who needs assigned parking near their unit as a reasonable accommodation for that disability. A reasonable accommodation is a change to a rule, practice, or policy that allows a person with a disability the same opportunity to live in and enjoy a property as other persons. Under the Fair Housing Act, landlords may not deny such requests or assess a surcharge for persons with disabilities who need assigned parking as a reasonable accommodation.
Following their investigation, FHP, HECP, and NFHA filed a complaint against AION with the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) in 2021. In early 2023, HUD determined that probable cause existed that AION had violated the Fair Housing Act, issued a charge of discrimination against AION, and referred the case to the the U.S. Department of Justice’s Civil Rights Division (DOJ). On July 7, 2023, DOJ filed the lawsuit, United States v. AION Management, LLC, in the United States District Court for the District of Delaware. By intervening as plaintiffs in the lawsuit, FHP, HECP, and NFHA will fight alongside DOJ to ensure the fair housing rights of all people.
Joseph Wardenski of Wardenski P.C. represents FHP, HECP, and NFHA, together with co-counsel Morgan Williams and Scott Chang of NFHA, and Delaware counsel John Whitelaw of the Community Legal Aid Society, Inc.
Documents
Complaint-in-Intervention (11.30.2023)
Media
Justice Dept. alleges Pa. housing provider discriminated against those with disabilities (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette | 08.26.2023) (paywall)
