One of the Questions I often am asked during fair housing training is whether children can be restricted from playing in the common areas of apartment communities. The answer depends on the specifics of the community, but generally, rules relating to children should be clearly related to safety and not to a particular behavior. Owners and managers should be very careful when imposing rules that restrict the areas in which children may play.
A recent court case from Minnesota, United States of America v. Greenbrier Village Homeowner’s Association, Inc., Gassen Company, Inc., and Diane Brown, illustrates the pitfalls when imposing overly restrictive rules regarding children.
The lawsuit, brought by the United Stated Department of Justice (DOJ) and settled in March 2015, alleged that Greenbrier and Gassen, along with the property manager, unlawfully discriminated against families with children by having and enforcing rules regarding the use of common areas. Greenbrier has settled with the Justice Department, agreeing to establish a new non-discrimination policy, pay a $10,000 penalty to the United States and pay $100,000 to six families that suffered as a result of the discrimination.
The DOJ alleged that the defendants required children to be supervised at all times when in a common area, prohibited or unreasonably restricted children from using the common areas and selectively enforced common area rules by issuing warnings and violation notices to residents with children, but not to adults engaging in the same activities.
This case should serve as a reminder that policies regarding behavior should not be specific to children or families with children. Also, owners and managers should not require unreasonable supervisory rules for children playing at the property. For example, while a rule requiring that children be supervised in swimming pools or exercise facilities may be acceptable, requiring the same rule for children playing in any common area probably not be considered reasonable.