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It shall be unlawful to
refuse to sell or rent or refuse to negotiate for the sale or deny a
dwelling to any person because of race, color, religion, sex, age, marital
status, handicap, national origin, source of income or because the
person has a child or children. |
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Sixteen years later Hamburg has been put to the test…and the grade? A+!
In February 2002, a
Hamburg resident contacted HOME and reported that she was denied housing
at the Camelot Village Apartments on McKinley Parkway because they refused
to accept her Section 8 voucher. The client claimed she was told the
complex used to accept Section 8 but no longer did as a result of new
management. The suspected case of discrimination was tested by HOME’s
fair housing investigators and the results were supportive of the client’s
claim.
HOME filed a case with
the Town of Hamburg and was met with much support from Hamburg’s
Department of Community Development. This was the first time that the
ordinance was used and Hamburg was very cooperative, and had no hesitation
regarding enforcement of the law. With assistance from the Department of
Community Development, HOME negotiated a settlement in which Camelot
Village agreed to abide by fair housing law, undergo fair housing training
to be provided by HOME, and to pay $500 to Child and Family Services.
This payment has already been paid in full.
What does this mean for
HOME? This means that this civil rights agency is one step closer to its
mission of “enabling all people to exercise their right to rent, buy, or
build a home…without restrictions based on such factors as race, color,
creed, national origin, sex, age, marital status, disability, sexual
orientation, lawful source of income, or the presence of children
in a family.” To the Community Housing Center this means an expansion of
opportunity for our clients all of whom receive Section 8. This case
brings hope that soon Buffalo and other surrounding areas will embrace
ordinances such as this. |
