National Fair Housing Allia. v. A.G. Spanos Const.

• Decision Date: 04 April 2008
• Docket Number: No. 07-3255 SBA.,07-3255 SBA.
• Citation: 542 F.Supp.2d 1054
• Parties: NATIONAL FAIR HOUSING ALLIANCE, et al., Plaintiffs, v. A.G. SPANOS CONSTRUCTION, INC., et al., Defendants.
• Court: U.S. District Court — Northern District of California

542 F.Supp.2d 1054

NATIONAL FAIR HOUSING ALLIANCE, et al., Plaintiffs, v. A.G. SPANOS CONSTRUCTION, INC., et al., Defendants.

No. 07-3255 SBA.

United States District Court, N.D. California.

April 4, 2008.

COPYRIGHT MATERIAL OMITTED

D. Scott Chang, John P. Relman, Michael Allen, Stephen M. Dane, Relman & Dane PLLC, Washington, DC, for Plain' tiffs.

Thomas Harvey Keeling, Lee Roy Pierce, Jr., Freeman, D'Aiuto, Pierce, Gurev, Keeling & Wolf, Stockton, CA, Makesha Antoinette Patterson, Stephen Scott Walters, Allen Matkins Leek Gamble Mallory & Natsis LLP, Shirley Jackson, Manatt Phelps & Phillips, San Francisco, CA, for Defendants.

ORDER

ARMSTRONG, District Judge.

Currently before the Court are:

1. Defendant A.G. Spanos Construction Inc.'s Motion to Dismiss Plaintiffs' First Amended Complaint [Docket No. 48];

2. Defendant A.G. Spanos Construction Inc.'s Motion to Dismiss Plaintiffs' First Amended Complaint for Failure to Join Necessary and Indispensable Parties [Docket No. 49];

3. Defendant A.G. Spanos Construction Inc.'s Motion for More Definite Statement [Docket No. 50];

4. Defendant A.G. Spanos Construction Inc.'s Motion to Strike Various Claims for Relief Sought in Plaintiffs' First Amended Complaint [Docket No. 52];

5. Defendant Knickerbocker Properties, Inc. XXXVII's Motion to Dismiss [Docket No. 57]; and

6. Defendant Highpointe Village, L.P.'s Motion to Dismiss [Docket No. 60].

Having read and considered the arguments presented by the parties in the papers submitted to the Court, the Court finds this matter appropriate for resolution without a hearing. For the reasons articulated below, the Court hereby DENIES the motions.

BACKGROUND

A. The Parties

1. The Plaintiffs

The Plaintiffs are five fair housing organizations: (1) the National Fair Housing Alliance, "a national non-profit entity" with its principle place of business in Washington, D.C; (2) Fair Housing of Marin, "a private non-profit community organization" located in San Rafael, California; (3) Fair Housing Napa Valley, "a non-profit community organization" located in Napa, California; (4) Metro Fair Housing Services, "a nonprofit community organization" located in Atlanta, Georgia; and (5) The Fair Housing Continuum, Inc., "a private, non-profit organization committed to equal housing opportunity and the elimination of discrimination in Florida." See First Amended Complaint ("FAC") at ¶¶ 15-19. Plaintiffs' alleged missions include advocating for the rights of people with disabilities to accessible housing, promoting equal housing opportunities, and eliminating housing and lending inequities. Id. at ¶¶ 15-19.

2. The A.G. Spanos Defendants

Defendants A.G. Spanos Construction, Inc., A.G. Spanos Development, Inc., A.G. Spanos Land Company, Inc., A.G. Spanos Management, Inc., and The Spanos Corporation (the "Spanos Defendants") are California corporations with principal offices in Stockton. Id. at ¶¶ 20-25. The Spanos Defendants allegedly "engaged in one or more activities related to land acquisition, development, construction, and management of multifamily apartment complexes throughout the United States." Id. at ¶ 20.

3. Defendant Highpointe Village, L.P.

Defendant Highpointe Village, L.P. ("Highpointe") is alleged to be the owner of a single apartment complex consisting of approximately 300 units, known as Highpointe Village, in Overland Park, Kansas. See id. at ¶¶ 34, 62. This apartment complex was allegedly "designed and/or built by the Spanos Defendants." Id. at ¶ 34. Construction of Highpointe Village is alleged to have been "completed in 2003." Id. at ¶ 62 (p. 27:2). Overland Park issued the last certificate of occupancy for Highpointe Village on December 8, 2003, more than three years before Plaintiffs filed this complaint. See Certificate of Occupancy (RJN, Exh. B). Highpointe is named both individually and as one of two representatives of a defendant class comprised of both known and unknown "current owners of non-compliant units" (the "Owner Class Defendants"). See, e.g., FAC at ¶¶ 1, 30.

4. Defendant Knickerbocker Properties, Inc. XXXVIII

The second named representative of the Owner Class Defendants is Knickerbocker Properties, Inc. XXXVIII ("Knickerbocker"), which is alleged to own two apartment complexes also alleged to have been "designed and/or constructed by the A.G. Spanos Defendants": (1) "Mountain Shadows" in Rohnert Park, California; and (2) "The Commons" in Vacaville, California. Id. at ¶¶ 32-33. Like Highpointe, Knickerbocker is also sued individually. Id. at ¶ 32.

5. The Owner Class Defendants

Plaintiffs intend to seek certification of a defendant class consisting of "the current owners of covered apartment complexes that were designed and/or built by the A.G. Spanos Defendants since the effective date of the FHA, but are no longer owned by the A.G. Spanos Defendants" (the "Owner Class Defendants"). Id. at ¶ 32. Such apartment complexes allegedly do "not fully comply with the accessibility and adaptability requirements of the FHA." Id. at ¶ 35. The properties are owned by the Owner Class Defendants and located in at least 9 different states.

B. Allegations Of Non-Compliance With The FHA

1. Alleged violations of the FHA by the Spanos Defendants

Plaintiffs allege that 82 apartment complexes located in 10 states, allegedly designed and constructed by the Spanos Defendants between 1991 and 2007, do not comply with requirements of the Fair Housing Amendments Act ("FHA"), 42 U.S.C. §§ 3601, et. seq. They make the same claim with respect to an unknown number of unidentified properties located, presumably, throughout the United States in unspecified locations. The subject properties allegedly contain over 22,000 apartment units. Plaintiffs seek an injunction ordering defendants to retrofit the properties to conform to the FHA.

More specifically, Plaintiffs allege that the Spanos Defendants "have been involved in the design and construction of approximately [82] multifamily complexes in California, Nevada, Arizona, Colorado, New Mexico, Texas, Kansas, North Carolina, Georgia and Florida." FAC, ¶ 27. Plaintiffs claim to have identified 34 apartment complexes in California, Arizona, Nevada, Texas, Kansas, Georgia, and Florida (the "Tested Properties"), totaling more than 10,000 individual apartment dwelling units, that do not meet the accessibility requirements of the FHA. FAC, ¶¶ 3, 30. With respect to the Tested Properties, Plaintiffs allege that since 1991 the Spanos Defendants have "engaged in a continuous pattern and practice of discrimination against people with disabilities" by "designing and/or constructing" apartment complexes that deny full access to and use of the facilities as required under the FHA. FAC, ¶ 4.

Plaintiffs also allege that 49 additional apartment complexes in 10 states which the Spanos Defendants designed or constructed (the "Untested Properties") also violate FHA accessibility requirements. FAC, ¶ 6 and Appendix A to Complaint. The Spanos Defendants are also alleged to have designed or constructed an unspecified number of additional unidentified apartment complexes located in states not yet known to Plaintiffs. FAC, ¶ 28.

Plaintiffs claim to have "identified at least one FHA violation and, in most cases, multiple violations, at each of the Tested Properties." Based on the alleged frequency and similarity of these violations, Plaintiffs allege "a pervasive pattern and practice of designing and constructing apartment communities in violation of the FHA accessibility design requirements." FAC, ¶ 45. Alleged FHA violations at the Tested Properties also include failure to design and construct the public and common areas so that they are readily accessible to and usable by people with disabilities. FAC, ¶¶ 45-47. As for the Untested Properties, Plaintiffs allege only that they were designed and/or constructed after March, 1991. FAC, ¶ 6.

2. Allegations Related to the Owner Class Defendants

Plaintiffs do not allege that Highpointe, Knickerbocker or any other Owner Class Defendant has violated the FHA or any other law. However, Plaintiffs seek a court order against the Owner Class Defendants:

Enjoining the Owner [Class] Defendants from failing or refusing to permit the retrofits ordered by the Court to be made in their respective properties, to comply with such procedures for inspection and certification of the retrofits performed as may be ordered by this Court, and to perform or allow such other acts as may be necessary to effectuate any judgment against A.G. Spanos Defendants.

Id. at p. 40:16-21.

B. Alleged Injuries to Plaintiffs and Relief Sought

Plaintiffs allege injury as follows:

72. As a result of the A.G. Spanos Defendants' actions described above, Plaintiffs have been directly and substantially injured in that they have been frustrated in their missions to eradicate discrimination in housing, and in carrying out the programs and services they provide, including encouraging integrated living patterns, educating the public about fair housing rights and requirements, educating and working with industry groups on fair housing compliance, providing counseling services to individuals and families looking for housing or affected by discriminatory housing practices and eliminating discriminatory housing practices.

73. As outlined above, each Plaintiff has invested considerable time and effort in educating its respective communities about the importance of accessible housing for people with disabilities, in an attempt to secure compliance by entities involved in the design and construction of covered multifamily dwellings. Each time the A.G. Spanos Defendants designed and constructed covered dwellings that did not comply with the FHA in one of Plaintiffs' service areas, the A.G. Spanos Defendants frustrated the mission of that Plaintiff, inasmuch as it served to discourage people with disabilities from living at that dwelling, and encouraged other entities involved in the...