The Hill House apartment building, an 11-story high-rise at 201 West Evergreen Avenue, settled a discrimination complaint filed against it by the Fair Housing Council of Suburban Philadelphia for $30,000.
The complaint, brought to the council by former Hill House employee Marijane Ciccone, centered on what Ciccone characterized as e-mails and directions from her boss, Paul Weinberg, that urged her not to lease apartments to prospective tenants who used wheelchairs.
The complaint argued that the Hill House violated the Fair Housing Act that prohibits discrimination in any aspect of the sale, rental, insuring, financing or advertising of dwellings on the basis of race, color, religion, national origin, gender, familial status and disability.
Despite the cash settlement, Weinberg admitted to no wrongdoing, according to the FHCSP, but agreed to comply with fair housing regulations in the future and to attend training in order to do so.
As of press time, Weinberg, who does not live at the Hill House, could not be reached for comment.
Ciccone, a former office manager who was responsible for limited apartment leasing and bookkeeping duties for about one year, told the Local that she became uncomfortable after she was asked not to lease to or to renew the leases of anyone in a wheelchair.
“I was asked to break the law, which would have jeopardized my real estate license,” Ciccone said.
She quit her job with Hill House in November 2006 and alerted the FHCSP about Hill House’s practices. She also filed an employment discrimination complaint against Hill House that was also settled for a confidential amount that Ciccone could not discuss. That complaint, she said, stemmed from the same discriminatory allegations of the housing case.
FHCSP director James Berry told the Local that his organization conducted its own investigation of Hill House after receiving Ciccone’s complaint. That investigation, he said, consisted of people from his agency posing as wheelchair-using prospective tenants at the Hill House.
“It was clear that the Hill House wasn’t responding [to the council’s investigators],” Berry said.
The council then filed a complaint with the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development that was referred to the Pennsylvania Human Relations Commission for investigation, after which the parties agreed to the settlement terms.
Barry said the council will receive the $30,000 and use it for its housing education and advocacy efforts. A nonprofit agency with more than 50 years of experience in housing advocacy, the FHCSP supports other groups that work on fair housing issues, trains tenants and landlords about fair housing regulations and is involved in many other activities related to housing.
Berry said the $30,000 settlement was not unusual. His agency receives 100 complaints annually and recently settled a discrimination complaint with the Loags Corner Mobile Home Park in Elverson for $50,000.
Disclosure: The FHCSP currently has a complaint pending against the Chestnut Hill Local for publishing classified advertisements for rental properties that contained phrases similar to “perfect for one person” or “single person only” that the council said were a violation of the Fair Housing Act.
The Pennsylvania Human Relations Commission is reviewing the complaint for possible settlement.
The Local has ceased the practice of including such phrases in its ads.
