FAIR HOUSING BOARD
The Fair Housing Board was formed to ensure that all Elyrians receive fair and equal treatment in relation to housing. Illegal discrimination in housing can occur due to race, religion, color, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, national origin, age, disability, ethnic group, Vietnam-era or disabled veteran status, familial status, marital status or ancestry.
The five-person Fair Housing Board is appointed by the Mayor.
Staff
- Ashley Scott | Community Development Director, Board Secratary
Fair Housing Board Members
- Clifton Oliver | Resident
- Attorney Karen Wu | Legal Aid Society
- Lila E Robinson | Case Western Reserve University, Department Administrator, Organizational Behavior, Weatherhead School of Management.
- David K Root | Commander, Elyria Council of Veterans
- Mone’t Roberts | Executive Director Elyria Community Partnership
IT’S YOUR RIGHT
It is the continuing policy of the City of Elyria to do all things necessary and proper to secure for all its citizens their right to equal housing opportunities regardless of their race, color, creed, sex, familial status, religious belief, national origin or disability.
THE LAW
Title VIII of the Civil Rights Act of 1968 (Fair Housing Act), as amended, prohibits discrimination in the sale, rental, and financing of dwellings, and in other housing-related transactions, based on race, color, national origin, religion, sex, familial status (including children under the age of 18 living with parents or legal custodians, pregnant women, and people securing custody of children under the age of 18), and handicap (disability).
Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, color, or national origin in programs and activities receiving federal financial assistance.
Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 prohibits discrimination based on disability in any program or activity receiving federal financial assistance.
Section 109 of Title 1 of the Housing & Community Development Act of 1974 prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, color, national origin, sex or religion in programs and activities receiving financial assistance from HUD’s Community Development and Block Grant Program.
Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 prohibits discrimination based on disability in programs, services, and activities provided or made available by public entities. HUD enforces Title II when it relates to state and local public housing, housing assistance and housing referrals.
If you want to file a charge in person, our address is 131 Court St., Suite 302, Elyria, Ohio 44035. Office hours are generally 8:00 am – 4:30 pm, excluding holidays. Please call or email with questions at 440-326-1541 or 440-326-1540 or by email at ascott@cityofelyria.org.
Charges can also be filed online at the following link:
https://civ.ohio.gov/how-to-file-a-charge/types-of-charges/2-housing-discrimination
Please note: An email address is required to file a charge online. Email will be used during the investigation process for communication with OCRC staff and sharing of documentation. If you do not have an email address, you can file a charge by mail (pdf linked below).
The pdf can be mailed directly to OCRC Cleveland Regional Office 615 W Superior Ave., Suite 885, Cleveland, OH 44113 or to our City of Elyria, Office of Community Development. Address found above.
To read more about your rights:
CONTACT
Fair Housing Board | Elyria Codified Ordinance 725.05
There is hereby established the Fair Housing Board, to consist of five members who shall be qualified electors of the City, who shall not hold any elected public office at the Municipal, County, State or Federal level at any time while a member of the Board and who shall not be employed by the City, but may be employed by the County, State or Federal Government. Any duly appointed Board member who is a candidate for any public office shall be automatically disqualified from further membership on the Board. The day the Board member files petitions with the Lorain County Board of Elections shall be the date of the disqualification. Nothing shall prohibit the Board from consulting and meeting with real estate agents or representatives of lending institutions in matters regarding educational or other programs to further the purpose of this chapter.
(b.) The Board members shall be appointed by the Mayor. Of the members first appointed, one shall hold office for a term of one year, one for a term of two years, one for a term of three years, one for a term of four years and one for a term of five years, and their successors shall be appointed for terms of five years. The Mayor shall fill all vacancies by appointment for the remainder of the unexpired term. The Mayor shall be an ex-officio member of the Board. After being duly constituted, a Chairperson and Vice-Chairperson shall be chosen by a majority vote of the Board.
(c.) The Secretary of the Board shall be appointed by the Mayor and may be an employee of the City.
(d.) The Mayor may recommend to Council the removal of any member of the Board for neglect of duty or malfeasance in office. Council may remove a member of the Board from office by an affirmative vote of at least three-quarters of Council only after having first given to such member a written copy of the charges against him or her and an opportunity to be publicly heard in person or by counsel, in his or her own defense, and any such removal shall be final. The procedure at such public hearing and any further provisions regarding removal shall be governed by the provisions of the City Charter relating to the removal of members of boards and commissions.
(e.) Three members of the Board shall constitute a quorum for the purpose of conducting the business thereof. A vacancy on the Board shall not impair the right of the other members to exercise all the power of the Board.
(f.) Each member of the Board shall serve without salary, but shall be paid necessary and actual expenses expended in performing the business of the Board.
(g.) The Board is charged with the following duties to implement the stated policy of this chapter:
(1) To investigate all complaints of unlawful housing practices which are filed with it.
(2) To initiate complaints of unlawful housing practices on the basis of studies carried out by its staff or volunteers authorized by the Board.
(3) To endeavor, by conciliation, to resolve such complaints.
(4) To hold hearings, subpoena witnesses, compel their attendance, administer oaths, take the testimony of any person under oath and, in connection therewith, require the production for examination of any books or papers relating to any matter under investigation or in question before the Board.
(5) To render at least once a year to the Mayor and to Council a full written report of all its activities and recommendations.
(6) To recommend to the Mayor, when it deems necessary, educational and other programs designed to promote the purpose stated in this chapter.
(7) To adopt rules and procedures for the conduct of its business.
(8) To do such other acts that are necessary and proper in order to perform those duties with which it is charged under the terms of this chapter.
(h.) The Director of the Equal Opportunity Department shall be responsible for the administration of this chapter. This responsibility may be delegated to the Equal Opportunity Department staff.
(Ord. 96-98. Passed 5-6-96.)
725.06 PROCEDURES AND ENFORCEMENT.
(a.) Any person subjected to an unlawful housing practice may file, with the Board, within 360 days of the alleged violation, a complaint in writing, sworn to or affirmed, which shall state:
(1) The name and address of the person aggrieved
(2) The name and address of the person against whom the complaint is filed;
(3) A description and the address of the dwelling which involves the alleged discriminatory housing practice;
(4) A concise statement of the facts, including pertinent dates, constituting the alleged discriminatory housing practice, and such other information as may be required by the Board.
The complaint may be reasonably and fairly amended. The Board may also corroborate or initiate complaints on the basis of studies carried out by its staff or volunteers authorized by the Board.
(b.) Upon the filing of a complaint, the Secretary of the Board shall make such investigations that he or she deems appropriate to ascertain facts and issues. Such investigations shall be conducted within fourteen business day after the filing of the complaint. The investigation may be extended when deemed necessary by the Chairperson of the Fair Housing Board. If the Secretary determines that there are reasonable grounds to believe a violation has occurred, he or she shall attempt to conciliate the matter by methods of initial conference and persuasion with all interested parties and such representatives as the parties may choose to assist them. Conciliation conferences shall be informal, and nothing said or done during such initial conferences shall be made public by any member of the Board or its staff, unless the parties agree thereto in writing.
(c.) The terms of conciliation agreed to by the parties shall be reduced to writing and incorporated into a consent agreement to be signed by the parties, which agreement is for conciliation purposes only and does not constitute an admission by any party that the law has been violated. Consent agreements shall be signed on behalf of the Board by its Chairperson.
(d.) The Board is hereby authorized to seek the cooperation and aid of the Ohio Real Estate Commission, the Ohio Civil Rights Commission or the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and any other person or group regarding any matter before the Board.
(e.) If the Secretary determines that the complaint lacks reasonable grounds upon which to base a violation of this chapter, he or she shall so inform the Board, and the Board may, in its discretion, dismiss such complaint or order such further investigation as may be necessary. The Board shall not dismiss such complaint without first affording either party an opportunity to appear before the Board.
(f.) If the Secretary, with respect to a matter which involves a violation of this chapter, fails to conciliate a complaint after the parties have in good faith attempted such conciliation, fails to effect an informal conciliation agreement or a formal consent agreement or determines that a complaint is not susceptible of conciliation, he or she shall so notify the Board, and the Board shall thereafter schedule a public hearing to determine whether a violation of this chapter has been committed. The Board shall serve upon the respondent a written statement of charges and a summons and shall serve upon all interested parties a notice of the time and place of the hearing. The respondent or his or her authorized counsel may file and amend such statements with the Board prior to the hearing date as he or she deems necessary in support of his or her position. The hearing shall be open to the public. The hearing shall be held not less than fifteen calendar days nor more than thirty calendar days after service of the statement of charges and summons. The summons so issued must be signed by three members of the Board, and the issuance of such summons shall require the attendance of named persons and the production of relevant documents and records. The failure to comply with a summons shall constitute a violation of this chapter. The interested parties may, at their option, appear before the Board in person or by a duly authorized representative and may have the assistance of an attorney. The parties may present testimony and evidence, and the right to cross-examine witnesses shall be preserved. All testimony and evidence shall be given under oath or by affirmation. The Secretary shall keep a full record of the hearing, which record shall be public and open to inspection by any person, and upon request by any principal party to the proceeding, the Board shall furnish such party a copy of the hearing record, at such cost as the Board deems appropriate.
(g.) If, at the conclusion of the hearing, the Board determines upon the preponderance of the evidence that the person complained against has violated this chapter, the Board shall, after consultation with the Administrative Legal Counsel in executive session, state its findings and cause the Administrative Legal Counsel to prepare and issue an order under Board directive requiring the person complained against to cease and desist from such unlawful conduct and to take such affirmative action as will effectuate the purpose of this chapter, with notice that if the Board, upon investigation by the Secretary, determines that the person complained against has not, after fifteen calendar days following service of the Board’s order, complied with the order, the Board will recertify the matter to the Administrative Legal Counsel for enforcement. The Administrative Legal Counsel shall seek compliance by appropriate civil action brought in the name of the Fair Housing Board of the City before a court of competent jurisdiction.
(h.) If, at the conclusion of the hearing, the Board determines upon the preponderance of the evidence of the record that the person complained against has not violated this chapter, the Board shall so state and publish its findings and issue its orders dismissing the complaint.
(Ord. 96-98. Passed 5-6-96.)