A Chicago suburb agreed Tuesday to allow contruction of a group home for the retarded in a federal court settlement that may ease efforts to build housing for the handicapped across the nation. Chicago Heights also agreed to pay $45,000 in damages and report for five years all actions affecting housing for the handicapped. ``We hope other communities will get the message that the handicapped have rights under the Fair Housing Act,'' said James P. Turner, acting head of the Justice Department's civil rights division. ``If local officials don't pay attention to those rights, they will pay damages for violating them,'' Turner said. Under the consent decree approved by U.S. District Judge William T. Hart, Chicago Heights agreed to issue a zoning permit before week's end to Residential Facilities Management Services Inc., of Galesburg, Ill. The permit will allow construction of a group home for 15 retarded adults. The agreement settles lawsuits filed June 20 by the Justice Department and the next day by the corporation charging the City Council violated the Fair Housing Act when it voted May 1 to turn down a request for the zoning permit. The lawsuits were the first brought by the government under the Fair Housing amendment enacted last year to protect the handicapped. The lawsuits contended the City Council vote was motivated by opposition from residents prejudiced against the retarded. Chicago Heights, while not admitting to any discrimination, agreed to pay $30,000 to RFMS for construction delays and $1,000 to each of the 15 people who eventually will live in the home. The city contends the permit was denied because RFMS had not supplied necessary documents with its application. ``The fact that the inhabitants happened to be developmentally disabled was not a factor,'' said Chicago Heights lawyer Nick J. DiGiovanni. He said the city agreed to the settlement ``in recognition of the cost saving of not having to go to trial to be vindicated.'' Under the agreement, Chicago Heights officials also must report to the federal government for the next five years any other applications they receive from anyone wanting to operate a facility for the handicapped. They must report within five days any changes made in local laws governing such facilities. RFMS must submit site plans and other documents to the city, and pledge that the home will not be used to care for mentally ill or emotionally disturbed patients. It also must limit the number of residents to 15. Justice Department spokeswoman Deborah Burstion-Wade said the settlement may make it easier for the government to obtain court orders in future cases involving the refusal of local governments to grant permits for group homes. ``Our hope is that this (agreement) will be noted by other communities, not only in the Chicago metropolitan area of Illinois, but nationwide _ that it's impermissible for them to deny access to living accommodations on behalf of developmentally disabled persons,'' said Richard E. Friedman, attorney for RFMS, which operates 55 group homes in 35 other Illinois communities. Group homes for the handicapped, usually established in residential neighborhoods, are designed to encourage independence. Residents live under supervision, but are given greater responsibility for everyday decisions than in other facilities.
