SANTA MONICA—The Consumer Protection Unit (CPU) of the Santa Monica City Attorney’s Office launched the website The Nifty Fifty on June 26. The website will release 50 real life stories of accommodations and modifications to improve the housing conditions for tenants with disabilities.

The website currently has 10 stories of tenants, but 40 additional stories will be added by the City of Santa Monica during the National Fair Housing Month in April 2015.

The CPU started to notice a surge of disability cases in 2012, many tenants with disabilities wanted to change building rules or modifications. The CPU has seen housing resources scattered all over the internet. The Nifty Fifty site will help bring resources together on one website.

In a news release, Deputy City Attorney Gary Rhoades said, “tenants and landlords are looking for information and examples to help them reach a resolution.  By providing The Nifty Fifty free and online, we are putting the many real-life solutions to work for everyone.”

Santa Monica tenant Juditte Erki indicated that she could have used a site like The Nifty Fifty when she encountered an accommodation issue with her landlord. She is a wheelchair user who has been parking her modified, ramp-equipped van in the same parking spot at the Sea Castle Apartments for nearly five years.

“The Nifty Fifty is very helpful,” said Erki, “The website tells the stories of tenants who faced a problem in their home like I did, and then it shows you ways you might deal with it.  While the CPU wrote a letter to Sea Castle for me, and I got to keep my parking space, the next time I have an issue, I will check The Nifty Fifty first before I call.”

The CPU invites the public to read, like, and forward the stories to those who are interested. Providers of the stories with top votes by February 1, 2015 will be invited to speak at Santa Monica’s April 2015 Fair Housing Workshop.

The website contents will include:

-An annually renewed list of 50 recent stories.

-Brief hyperlinked summaries with detailed stories on a separate page.

-A “like” button so that users can show which stories are their favorites.

-Information on how to request an accommodation.

-Links to other housing and disability resources.

-A submit-your-own-story button.

-Brief legal analysis of each example.

-Summaries of the all-time top five California court decisions involving reasonable accommodations or modifications.

The website is designed to be functional with smartphones as well as in desktops and laptops computers. The City of Santa Monica’s Web Development Team, which includes Keith Kurtz, Behrang Abadi, and Kegan Maher built the website.

The Nifty Fifty can be accessed at reasonableaccommodations.org.