The organizations investigated apartment units at Gilbert Court at the Greene in Beavercreek, Ohio, Lofts at Zona Rosa in Kansas City, Missouri, and Bayshore in Glendale, Wisconsin. All of the properties, including 272 individual apartments, were developed by Steiner + Associates and failed to meet the accessibility requirements of fair housing and disability laws. Steiner is developing additional properties in Virginia, Texas and Pennsylvania.

The lawsuit also names Mecham & Apel, Architects, Inc., Development Design Group, Inc., Torti Gallas and Partners, Inc., Messer Construction Co., Corna/Kokosing Construction Co., and others. The Fair Housing Act makes it illegal to discriminate based on disability, race, color, national origin, religion, sex or familial status.

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, more than 51 million Americans (nearly one in five) have some form of disability. Of that number, more than 2.7 million people over the age of 15 years use a wheelchair. Another 7 million use a cane, crutches, a walker or other mobility aid. These numbers are expected to increase as the population ages and wounded veterans return from Iraq and Afghanistan.

The lawsuit alleges that Steiner + Associates, et al., have engaged in a continuous pattern and practice of discrimination against people with disabilities by designing and/or constructing multifamily dwellings inaccessible to people with disabilities. Architectural barriers at these properties include insurmountable thresholds, steps to the bedrooms, narrow hall widths and bathrooms with insufficient clear floor space — all of which prohibit the maneuverability of people in wheelchairs. Apartments also had environmental controls beyond the reach of wheelchair users. In addition, common use areas had accessible routes and passageways, abrupt level changes at thresholds and counter tops that were too high for use by people with wheelchairs.

After an investigation of Gilbert Court at the Greene found multiple units out of compliance with the Fair Housing Act, the Miami Valley Fair Housing Center filed a complaint with the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development in March 2007. The complaint was referred to the Ohio Civil Rights Commission, which found probable cause to conclude that discriminatory practices had occurred at the property and referred the case to the Ohio Attorney General for prosecution. After the Metropolitan Milwaukee Fair Housing Council and the National Fair Housing Alliance identified units at Bayshore and Zona Rosa that were inaccessible to people with disabilities, the fair housing groups joined to file a lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Ohio.

"Steiner was founded over a decade after the passage of the Fair Housing Amendments Act, yet after all these years, people with disabilities continue to face discrimination because of Steiner's inaccessible designs. We will not allow them and their partners to continue harming the community and denying housing to people with disabilities by designing and constructing inaccessible housing." Jim McCarthy – President & CEO, Miami Valley Fair Housing Center

"Town centers are being developed and built all over the country with the benefit of integrating housing and retail in one place. People with disabilities cannot be left out. Accessible housing is an essential means of ensuring that people with disabilities are able to fully participate in community life. It is time for builders and developers to recognize their responsibility and comply with the law and construct housing units that are accessible for everyone." William Tisdale – President & CEO, Metropolitan Milwaukee Fair Housing Council

"It has been twenty years since the Fair Housing Act was amended to include disability. There cannot be a single valid reason for architects, developers, and builders to continue designing and building inaccessible housing. Steiner + Associates must undo the harm they have caused to these communities." Shanna Smith – President & CEO, National Fair Housing Alliance