The city and several contractors will pay to retrofit a city apartment complex in 'Ewa Beach that lacks required disabled-access features, under a settlement with the federal government.

The settlement, announced Thursday, calls for deficiencies to be fixed, such as moving handrails, changing the slope of ramps, widening doorways and more at the 150-unit West Loch Village apartment complex.

The settlement, filed in federal court here Thursday, stemmed from the construction of the West Loch Village.

Federal officials said the original complaint was filed against the owner, builder, architect and civil engineer "to enforce provisions of the federal Fair Housing Act that require recently constructed dwellings to include features designed to make the dwellings more accessible to persons with physical disabilities."

Under the partial settlement, which must be approved by the court to take effect, the defendants — the City and County of Honolulu; Mecon Hawaii Ltd.; Yamasato, Fujiwara, Higa & Associates Inc.; Hawaii Affordable Properties Inc.; and R.M. Towill Corp. — will pay all costs related to making the apartment complex accessible to people with disabilities.

City Deputy Corporation Counsel Marie Gavigan said the contractor and the architect are each required to contribute $53,333 toward the retrofits.

Based on the projected cost of the work, the city's share was also expected to be $53,333, she said.

R.M. Towill, the design consultant for the project, is contributing $45,000, and Hawaii Affordable Properties (the former property manager) is contributing $15,000, she said.

Gavigan said that if costs turn out to be more than expected, the city will pay for those additional costs.

Federal officials said the defendants must also establish a $75,000 fund that will be used to compensate individuals harmed by the inaccessible housing. And the defendants will be required to undergo training on the requirements of the Fair Housing Act.

Gavigan said this settlement is based upon a finding that some physical features of the West Loch elderly housing project did not strictly comply with technical accessibility standards. By this settlement, the city is voluntarily agreeing to use the money contributed by the co-defendants, as well as city money, to correct those technical deficiencies, she said.

She said the city's contribution to the $75,000 settlement fund for "aggrieved persons" will be paid by the former property manager's insurance carrier, so the city will not be required to use its own funds.

Gavigan said there have been no other "aggrieved persons" identified at West Loch; this type of fund is a routine requirement from the Justice Department whenever they settle these types of cases.

"Once they have the fund, they go out and search for any other 'aggrieved persons,' " she said.

"Accessible housing is a necessity for people with disabilities," said Wan J. Kim, assistant attorney general for the Civil Rights Division. "These types of design and construction cases reflect the Justice Department's commitment to enforcing this nation's fair housing laws."

The federal government's claim against the City and County of Honolulu, charging that one resident of the complex was hurt when he fell due to the design and construction defects, is not settled by this partial settlement agreement, officials said in a news release.

Reach Robbie Dingeman at rdingeman@honoluluadvertiser.com.