The Iowa Finance Authority has begun an investigation into whether construction of the Bettendorf Thomas Place apartments along E. Kimberly Road complies with federal standards for access by people with disabilities.
The Bettendorf senior housing complex at 2205 E. Kimberly Road is one of nine properties cited by the National Fair Housing Allliance (NFHA) in its lawsuit filed June 5 against Ryan Companies US, Inc., James N. Bergman, of LeClaire, IA, and Thomas and Thomas Associates.
"The lawsuit alleges that since about 2005, the defendants have engaged in a pattern and/or practice of building apartments for seniors which do not have the accessible features required by the Fair Housing Act," according to NFSA's news release on the court filing. "The defendants' apartments had many problems including: insufficient space to access sinks in kitchens and bathrooms; showers stalls that are too small to allow access; steep slopes on sidewalks and other routes of entrance; access aisles for accessible parking spaces which are blocked by concrete pillars," NFHA said.
The 116-unit Thomas Place senior housing was built with $29 million of Low Income Housing Tax Credits from the Iowa Finance Authority, plus $650,000 in Tax Increment Financing (TIF) incentives provided by the City of Bettendorf.
The state finance authority officials last late week said they have begun looking into the Thomas Place project to determine if the lawsuit allegations are accurate and if so, how the violations occurred. The state agency requires developers sign agreements the construction will comply with the Fair Housing Act standards, but inspection of the completed units for disability standard compliance and other building code requirements rests with each city's building inspection department.
The NFHA said in its news release about the lawsuit that "Ryan Companies and James Bergman have responded to the lawsuit positively by indicating a prompt intent to pursue settlement, including fixing accessibility violations."
Another company operated by Bergman, Iceberg Development LLC, recently received $800,000 in tax credits from the Iowa Finance Authority for development of a 92-unit family apartment complex called Villas at Fox Pointe in Knoxville, Iowa.
The other eight properties cited in the lawsuit by NFHA, HOPE Fair Housing Center and Open Communities include: Thomas Place, Glenview, IL; Thomas Place Fox Lake, Fox Lake, IL; Thomas Place Waukee, Waukee, IA; Hometown Harbor East Moline, East Moline, IL; Zurich Meadows, Zurich, IL; Thomas Place Gurnee, Gurnee, IL; Gardiner Place, East Dundee, IL; and Thomas Place Glendale Heights, Glendale Heights, IL.
