KENT: Residents being evicted from the Silver Oaks Place retirement community so that the apartment complex can be used for student housing are fighting back on two legal fronts.Cleveland attorney Avery Friedman, who has been retained by the tenants, said disabled residents are being assisted by the Community Action Council of Portage Council (CAC) in drafting and serving their landlord “requests for accommodation.”The law may not allow the residents to claim age discrimination, but there are statutes that address disability discrimination, Friedman said.“For those who are mobility impaired, they are entitled to reasonable accommodation by the landlord for their condition,” Friedman said. “We are requesting they remain at Silver Oaks until such time as the landlord can find them alternative housing which is equivalent in amenities, in rent and in nearness to the things they are familiar with.”But Friedman, who is also a regular legal analyst on CNN, isn’t optimistic the landlord will comply: “It’s the last thing they’re going to do. It’s clear they just want to clear out the old and bring in young people.”Residents have been given until Oct. 1 to leave, but with more than 250 residents being displaced, tenants say too many people are competing for limited options in Kent, and many similar communities in the area have waiting lists.Meanwhile, the tenants are also complaining to the Ohio Civil Rights Commission that the landlord retaliated against their efforts to mobilize by barring a meeting room to which their lease gives them 24-hour access.That action could be a violation of Ohio’s Fair Housing Act, which prohibits landlords from acting against a tenant for pursuing a fair housing complaint, Friedman said.In addition to changing the locks of the community “Silver Center” facility — to which all residents had keys — a wooden wall was erected to prevent access to the room from other parts of the building.“That’s silliness,” Friedman said.A notice posted at the hall said the room could be used weekdays from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., but that would prevent holding meetings when people are available after work, resident Bill Karaffa said.On Monday, the residents met with their attorney and Kent City Council representatives in a smaller room in the facility.Friedman said the civil rights division of the Ohio Attorney General’s Office learned about the Silver Oaks situation and called him “because they knew that dozens of charges were being filed and they needed to gear up administratively to take care of the onslaught.”The Civil Rights Commission office in Akron said it had not received any complaints as of Thursday afternoon, but Friedman said he expected the paperwork to be filed by the end of day Thursday or today.Folks living in the 13-acre complex of apartment buildings — some for more than 20 years — were told last month the property was being sold by Tell Real Estate Trust to Capstone Development Corp. of Birmingham, Ala. Silver Oaks management was not available for comment Thursday.Capstone launched a Web site (http://www.
silveroaksmoving.com) to answer the many questions residents have been asking.In an update on Wednesday, Capstone clarified that it does not yet own or manage Silver Oaks, but “we continue to move forward under our purchase agreement to close on the property on or before 12/31/11.”“We also remain committed to working with the existing residents to help make their transition to other living arrangements as smooth as possible,” the Web site notice said.In addition to paying for moving expenses of residents who relocate in the area, the company is hosting housing fairs so residents can meet representative of other housing communities. Fairs were held Wednesday and Thursday with facilities from Akron, Tallmadge, Maple Heights, Copley, Stow and Aurora.Capstone also gave residents 60 days instead of the traditional 30-day notice to move out, but tenants say finding a comparable home in the area has been challenging.Robert and Bernice Parrish said they are hoping an appointment to see an apartment in Stow today will prove successful.But even if all of the tenants are successfully relocated, Robert Parrish said he hopes the legal complaints continue their course.“We didn’t pursue this just for ourselves, but for the sake of justice and other seniors,” he said.Kent City Council members Robin Turner and Tracy Wallach met with residents this week and said council might consider a resolution of support at its meeting Wednesday. Paula Schleis can be reached at 330-996-3741 or pschleis@thebeaconjournal.com. Follow her on Twitter at http://twitter.com/paulaschleis.