Hawaii-based developers Albert C. Kobayashi, Stanford Carr Development and other defendants have agreed to pay $120,000 to settle federal claims they violated the Fair Housing Act when designing and building five Hawaii apartment complexes.

The U.S. Justice Department announced Oct. 20 that its 2019 lawsuit, amended in 2022, alleges the architects and builders failed to design and build five multifamily housing complexes in Hawaii according to the required accessible features to accommodate the disabled.

The other defendants are Martin V. Cooper, Design Partners Inc.; Michael N. Goshi, Fritz Johnson Inc.; Frederick M. Johnson, SCD Wailea Fairways LLC; Sato &Associates Inc.; Fukumoto Engineering Inc.; Rojac Construction Inc.; Delta Construction Corp.; Warren S. Unemori Engineering Inc.; GYA Architects Inc.; and Goodfellow Bros. LLC.

“These Hawaii developers were required by law to provide accessibility features for persons with disabilities,” said U.S. Attorney for the District of Hawaii Clare Connors. “Enforcement of these federal rights is a priority, and this settlement marks significant progress towards achieving it.”

The agreement also requires defendants to perform extensive retrofitting, including replacing or modifying steps and overly steep slopes on sidewalks and walkways, and lowering mailboxes for those using wheelchairs.

The defendants also must pay $200,000 for additional accessibility improvements at one of the properties.

Four of the five properties are on Maui — the Napilihau Villages and Napili Villas in Lahaina, Wailea Fairway Villas in Kihei and Kahului Town Terrace in Kahului.

The fifth, Palehua Terrace Phase I, is in Kapolei. It along with Kahului Town Terrace were designed as affordable housing under the federal government’s Low Income Housing Tax Credit program.

“People with disabilities have the right to safe and accessible housing,” said Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Civil Rights Division of the Justice Department.

“Under this agreement, hundreds of apartment units in Hawaii will be significantly improved so that people with disabilities are able to easily navigate the property. The Justice Department will continue to aggressively enforce our federal civil rights laws to address discrimination faced by people with disabilities across our country,” Clarke said.