Q. What does the city’s new cooling ordinance do?
A. On June 22, 2022, the City of Chicago adopted a new ordinance commonly referred to as the “Cooling Ordinance.” The cooling ordinance modifies the cooling requirements for high-rise residential buildings, including apartment, condominium and community associations as well as residential cooperatives in Chicago that are over 80 feet tall or have more than 100 dwelling units. The cooling ordinance was adopted on the heels of a heatwave in May that resulted in the deaths of three residents of a senior living facility in Chicago.
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Applicable residential buildings must maintain “at least” one indoor common area “cooling space” that is accessible to all residents when the heat index exceeds 80 degrees Fahrenheit and the “cooling and dehumidification system is not available in each dwelling unit.” The cooling space must have “cooling and dehumidification equipment capable of maintaining a room temperature of 75 degrees Fahrenheit and 50% relative humidity” (i.e., air conditioning) when the outdoor temperature is 92 degrees Fahrenheit and the mean coincident wet bulb temperature is 74 degrees Fahrenheit. The ordinance requires installation of temporary equipment for the cooling space by July 1, and permanent equipment by May 1, 2024.
Q. It is widely understood that the Federal Fair Housing Amendments Act requires condominium associations to reasonably accommodate mental disabilities by allowing an emotional support animal to be kept in a unit to ameliorate a resident’s disability. However, can the board restrict emotional support animals to certain areas of the common elements to accommodate residents who have severe cat and dog allergies?
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A. There is a well-established body of case law interpreting the Federal Fair Housing Amendments Act that allows persons with mental handicaps to keep an emotional support animal in their unit, even in a no-pet building. However, at the same time, case law holds that while reasonable accommodations are required, some accommodations may not be reasonable under the circumstances, and some may not be necessary for the laudable goal of inclusion. The doctrine of reasonable accommodation does not require thateverything humanly possible be done to accommodate a person with disabilities when there are adverse consequences to other residents. The cost to other property owners and the condominium association must be balanced against the benefits to the requesting individual.
When granting an accommodation to allow an emotional support animal in a unit, condominium boards have some latitude to establish reasonable guidelines that balance the severe allergies of an individual resident. It is a case-by-case analysis and solution.
Q. I own a condominium and several units in our association were recently destroyed in a fire. Rebuilding of the units is estimated to take 12 months or longer. The affected unit owners have asked if they can withhold their unit’s monthly assessments until their units are rebuilt, however, that will result in a budget shortfall for the association. Are unit owners whose units were destroyed by fire entitled to withhold their monthly assessments until the units are rebuilt?
A. Section 9(a) of the Condominium Act requires all unit owners to pay their proportionate share of the common expenses. In fact, section 18(o) of the Condominium Act prohibits a condominium board from forbearing the payment of assessments by a unit owner, which means a board cannot simply write off or reduce a unit owner’s assessment obligation.
Assessments are calculated based on a unit’s pro-rata share of the budget. The budget is the estimate of costs for administering the common elements of the association including maintenance, repair and replacement, security of the common elements, payment of insurance policy premiums and etc. All units must pay their assessment obligation in full even if a unit was destroyed by fire.
Got a question for the Condo Adviser? Email ctc-realestate@chicagotribune.com.
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