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U.S. Attorney Geoffrey Berman announced that the United States has reached a settlement with Bedford Development LLC, Carnegie Construction Corp., Jobco Inc., Robert Pasucci and Warshauer Mellusi Warshauer Architects, P.C. regarding accessibility concerns at the Sutton Manor condominium complex in Mount Kisco.
Berman said that the settlement requires the parties to pay nearly $200,000 for retrofits at the condominium complex. Improvements will be made to individual units and in the common areas of the building to make it more accessible. They must also pay $165,000 in restitution.
The complaint alleges that Sutton Manor was designed with several inaccessible features, including insufficiently wide door openings, lobby doors requiring excessive force to open and overly high thresholds at the entrances to the patios or balconies.
There were also insufficiently wide doors leading to patios and balconies in individual units, excessively high thresholds at the entrance to showers, and insufficiently clear floor space in hallways and kitchens to allow people in a wheelchair to maneuver.
According to Berman, some of the aggrieved parties who will be compensated moved into Sutton Manor because it was advertised as being accessible to people with disabilities.
“For almost 30 years, the Fair Housing Act has required newly built residential buildings to be accessible to people with disabilities, but some housing providers continue to disregard that requirement,” Berman said. “The flouting of the accessibility requirements was particularly egregious here, where the condominium was specifically advertised to older New Yorkers.
"This office will continue to use all legal tools available to enforce the Fair Housing Act and ensure that persons with disabilities have full access to residential buildings in this district.”
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