Jan 26, 2016
Disability Law Colorado recently secured a victory for a group of seniors with disabilities who wanted to live in a group home setting within a covenant controlled community. One of our clients was a veteran who had proudly served his country and just wanted to be close to his daughter and son-in-law so that they could take him to medical appointments and regular trips to the barber. Another client was a German native who met and married her life-long sweetheart when he was stationed in Germany. She wanted to move to this particular location so that she could be in walking distance to the home she shared for many years with her husband. Our last client was a spunky former school teacher. She yearned for more time with family and being in closer proximity would make that possible.
Initially, the owners and potential residents of the group home were told that they could not move into the neighborhood because they would negatively affect the property values and be a potential danger to children. Disability Law Colorado intervened and requested an accommodation to the covenant prohibiting “businesses” in the neighborhood and explained that the Fair Housing Act required such accommodations. After several months of negotiation during which the neighborhood association actually filed suit against the group home preventing them from allowing our clients to move-in, Disability Law Colorado participated in a mediation and the neighborhood association agreed to allow the group home to open. Our clients are anxiously awaiting move-in, which is expected to happen within the next month.
