Equal Rights Center Reaches Agreement to Ensure Accessibility for People with Disabilities at D.C. Apartment Building

WASHINGTON, May 6, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — The Equal Rights Center (ERC) today announced a cooperation agreement with 1214 Bladensburg LLC (“1214 Bladensburg”) to ensure accessibility for people with disabilities at the Bonsai Apartments, a 41-unit apartment building in Washington, D.C. The agreement resolves ERC’s allegations that Bonsai Apartments violated multiple accessible design and construction requirements in both individual units and common use areas.

ERC Executive Director Kate Scott comments, “Ensuring new multifamily buildings meet the basic accessible design and construction requirements is a priority for us because community members with disabilities have repeatedly highlighted an urgent need for accessible housing in the region. We’re happy to make a dent in that need through this agreement with 1214 Bladensburg.”

Per the agreement, 1214 Bladensburg will retain an expert consultant to conduct an accessibility survey of all units and public and common use areas at the Bonsai Apartments and propose corrections for each deficiency. ERC and 1214 Bladensburg will work together to agree on remediations, which 1214 Bladensburg will execute. Retrofits and/or other adjustments that would benefit current Bonsai tenants with disabilities will be prioritized. To further ensure accessibility for people with disabilities at the Bonsai Apartments, for a five-year term, 1214 Bladensburg also agrees to:

• Work with ERC to review and revise the company’s policy for processing reasonable accommodation and modification requests from tenants with disabilities;
• Receive training on accessible design and construction compliance;
• Become a member of the ERC’s Multifamily Housing Resource Program (MHRP) and receive annual fair housing training; and,
• Pay $175,000 for damages, attorneys’ fees, and compliance services.

“ERC created MHRP precisely for this purpose of helping housing providers navigate accessibility requirements and promote equal access,” Scott adds. “I’m confident our expertise and support will empower 1214 Bladensburg to maintain safe, welcoming homes for people with disabilities, and I encourage other housing providers to follow their example.”

ERC investigated the Bonsai Apartments in 2024 soon after the building opened for first occupancy. In its complaint, ERC alleged that the building contained hallways, bedroom doors, and bathroom doors too narrow for a person using a wheelchair to navigate, bathrooms too small for a person using a wheelchair to maneuver within, and a rooftop deck that a person using a wheelchair would not be able to access.

ERC was represented in this matter by Handley Farah & Anderson, Crowell & Moring, and the Washington Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights and Urban Affairs.

Matthew Handley, Partner at Handley Farah & Anderson, comments, “We are pleased by 1214 Bladensburg’s willingness to work with the ERC to ensure that all prospective tenants are welcome at Bonsai Apartments.”

Chelsea Sullivan, Associate Counsel at the Washington Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights and Urban Affairs, comments, “People with disabilities are a significant share of the population and deserve access to the same opportunities as everyone else. As a former tester with ERC, I am proud to support their work to make housing accessible for District residents.”

CONTACT:

Nick Adjami, Communications and Engagement Manager

Equal Rights Center

nadjami@equalrightscenter.org, (202) 370-3219

ABOUT THE EQUAL RIGHTS CENTER: The ERC is a civil rights organization that identifies and seeks to eliminate unlawful and unfair discrimination in housing, employment and public accommodations in its home community of Greater Washington D.C. and nationwide. The ERC’s core strategy for identifying unlawful and unfair discrimination is civil rights testing. When the ERC identifies discrimination, it seeks to eliminate it through the use of testing data to educate the public and business community, support policy advocacy, conduct compliance testing and training, and, if necessary, take enforcement action. For more information, please visit equalrightscenter.org.

ABOUT HANDLEY FARAH & ANDERSON: Handley Farah & Anderson are lawyers who seek to improve the world. Based in Washington, D.C., they fight for: workers deprived of wages, consumers deceived about products, tenants denied access to housing, farmers mistreated by processors, parents deprived of adequate parental leave, investors who were defrauded, small businesses harmed by antitrust violations, persons with disabilities denied access, whistleblowers who uncover fraud, and women and communities of color subject to discrimination.

ABOUT CROWELL & MORING LLP: Crowell & Moring is an international law firm with operations in the United States, Europe, MENA, and Asia. Drawing on significant government, business, industry and legal experience, the firm helps clients capitalize on opportunities and provides creative solutions to complex litigation and arbitration, regulatory and policy, and corporate and transactional issues. The firm is consistently recognized for its commitment to pro bono service as well as its programs and initiatives to advance diversity, equity and inclusion.

ABOUT THE WASHINGTON LAWYERS’ COMMITTEE FOR CIVIL RIGHTS AND URBAN AFFAIRS: The Washington Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights and Urban Affairs partners with community members and organizations on scores of cases to combat discrimination in housing, employment, education, immigration, criminal justice reform, public accommodations, based on race, gender, disability, family size, history of criminal conviction, and more. The Washington Lawyers’ Committee has secured a relentless stream of civil rights victories over the past five decades in an effort to achieve justice for all. For more information, please visit washlaw.org.

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SOURCE Equal Rights Center

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