The Department of Justice announced a $20,000 consent decree which resolves a lawsuit alleging that a Park City Utah condo association and its management company violated The Fair Housing Act. The DOJ alleges that they refused to grant a resident’s request for reasonable accommodation.
The lawsuit alleges that the Fox Point at Redstone Association, Property Management Systems and on-site property manager, Derek Peterson, refused to grant a reasonable accommodation that would have allowed Thomas Burton, a disabled combat veteran of the First Gulf War, to keep a small dog in the condo he rented. The dog helps the veteran to deal with the effects of depression and anxiety disorder. The lawsuit further alleges that the defendants refused to waive their pet fees and insurance requirements. Additionally, they issued multiple fines that led to the non-renewal of Mr. Burton’s lease.
The consent decree means that the defendants will pay $20,000 in monetary relief to Thomas Burton. And, they will be compelled to attend fair housing training; implement a new reasonable accommodation policy that does not charge fees to pet owners of service or assistance animals and does not require them to purchase liability insurance; and must comply with notice, monitoring and reporting requirements.