Schwarz v. Board of Supervisors ex rel. Villages Community Development Districts
Opinion of the Court
Plaintiffs brought a law suit claiming that Defendants had violated various fed
Plaintiffs are thirty-four deaf residents of The Villages, a planned retirement community in Florida. The community is comprised of several community development districts, which are statutorily-created government entities subject tq the same laws as any other municipality. Two of these districts, the Village Center Community Development District and the Sumter Landing Community Development District (together, “the Districts”), are defendants in this action.
Residents of The Villages have created over 2000 clubs in which their fellow residents who share mutual interests may participate. These clubs, known as Resident Life Groups (“Resident Groups”), cover a wide array of interests. There are, for example, card clubs, educational clubs focused on a particular subject matter, exercise clubs, athletic groups, support groups, college alumni groups, theatrical and musical groups, and car clubs. The Resident Groups are organized and run by the residents who participate in those clubs. The Districts do not supervise or direct the activities of a particular Resident Group. To the contrary, volunteers within the particular Resident Group plan and lead the programs and coordinate the logistics of scheduling meeting - dates and places. The Districts do allow Resident Groups to use District recreation facilities to hold their meetings, and the Districts coordinate with volunteer leaders of the Resident Group to schedule meeting times and places.
Plaintiffs sued the Districts, arguing that, as governmental entities, the latter are required by federal law to provide sign-language interpreters for meetings of these Resident Groups. Specifically, Plaintiffs claim that Defendants are obligated to provide accommodations for their disability under Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act (“ADA”), 42 U.S.C. § 12131 et seq., the Rehabilitation Act, 29 U.S.C. § 794 et seq., and the Fair Housing Act (“FHA”), 42 U.S.C. § 3603 et seq.
The district court granted summary judgment as to claims relating to the Resident Groups. Concerning the ADA and Rehabilitation Act claims,
Second, Plaintiff had also sued the Districts arguing that the Districts, themselves, had not complied with the above federal statutes based on the Districts’ failure to provide appropriate aecommoda-
AFFIRMED.
. Plaintiffs also brought claims against The • Villages Charter School, a separate entity from the Districts, but Plaintiffs’ claims against the Charter School are not at issue in this appeal.
. Rehabilitation Act claims apply the same standards as ADA claims and can be considered together, as the district court did. See Cash v. Smith, 231 F.3d 1301, 1305 (11th Cir. 2000).
Reference
- Full Case Name
- Louis SCHWARZ, Doris Schwarz, Janice Hickey, Thomas Hickey, Bernie Brown, Elizabeth Holst, Stephen Holst, Joanna Langlais, Francis Langlais, Patricia Smart, Robert Smart, Richard McElwain, Byron Zimmerman, Shirley Zimmerman, John Wilson, Charles Martin, Randall Walker, Evelyn Walker, Maureen Osgood, Carole Paul, Mary Kay Pickering, Andrew St. John, Karen Russell, Clarence Russell, Richard Woods, Linda Woods, Robert McDevitt, Lynn Stirling, Kathleen McElwain, Barbara Achin, Richard Achin, Diane St. John, Kenny Hynes, Mary Wilson v. BOARD OF SUPERVISORS, ON BEHALF OF the VILLAGES COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT DISTRICTS, The Villages Charter School, Inc., D.B.A. The Villages Lifelong Learning College, The Village Center Community Development District, Sumter Landing Community Development District
- Cited By
- 5 cases
- Status
- Published