Originally Posted by VillagerNut (Post 1328279)

I have lived in The Villages for 11 years. Not once have I heard about this lawsuit that has been going on for eight years. Why? If there would've been some public notice about this lawsuit, I am sure villagers would have stepped up to raise funds to accommodate whatever needed to happen to resolve this lawsuit. I have a hard time understanding how the accommodations could not happen. If they needed a hearing loop installed or whatever within the building I'm sure the money could've been raised to make that happen. But without the public knowing the situation we could not help. Now I hope someone will step up to the plate to figure out what can be resolved to rectify and revive the Lifelong Learning College.

Originally Posted by Lesdavenator (Post 1328516)

I hope Louis Schwartz and friends think long and hard about the 200 teachers who lost their jobs and the 18,000 Villagers who are now denied the joy of learning in this environment.
Most of us, who have disabilities would NOT have chosen to hurt so many innocents by pushing for a settlement that made keeping this wonderful opportunity available.
Somebody's mother must be proud.

Originally Posted by Lesdavenator (Post 1328516)

I hope Louis Schwartz and friends think long and hard about the 200 teachers who lost their jobs and the 18,000 Villagers who are now denied the joy of learning in this environment.
Most of us, who have disabilities would NOT have chosen to hurt so many innocents by pushing for a settlement that made keeping this wonderful opportunity available.
Somebody's mother must be proud.

Originally Posted by Villageswimmer (Post 1328518)

Lawsuits and discord don't sell houses.

Originally Posted by kstew43 (Post 1328523)

I still don't understand why these 32 villagers are taking all the blame for TV shutting down the LLC.

They didn't shut the doors...The Developer did.

Let me pose something to you.....if/when somebody becomes seriously hurt because of a argument with a seat saver at the squares and sues and then developer shuts down the entertainment... will you again blame the hurt villager, or the developer for not having proper security.

in essence I believe its the same thing....

Think about the real parties who are at fault in this situation and how a little money could have prevented this issue.

Originally Posted by kstew43 (Post 1328416)

The ADA is enforcing that. TV will just have to come up with a way to make this work for everyone...not just for some.....they will remedy this....i'm sure of it.... the lawsuit just lit a fire under there butts....

Originally Posted by donsimson (Post 1328543)

What is Next? Will our clubs now be subject to the same attack? Will all the different activities be subject to ADA regulations and force our recreation activities to cease? I hope there is still some compassion from this group to not attack the rest of our retirement pleasures.

Originally Posted by Henryk (Post 1328431)

Plaintiffs are Louis Schwarz, Doris Schwarz, Janice Hickey, Thomas Hickey, Bernie Brown, Elizabeth Holst, Stephen Holst, Joanna Langlais, Francis Langlais, Robert Smart, Richard McElwain, Byron Zimmerman, Shirley Zimmerman, John Wilson, Charles Martin, Randall Walker, Evelyn Walker, Maureen Osgood, Carole Paul, Mary Kay Pickering, Andrew St. John, Karen Russell, Clarence Russell, Richard Woods, Linda Woods, Robert McDevitt, Lynn Stirling, Kathleen McElwain, Herbert Pickering, Barbara Achin, Ronald Achin, Diane St. John, Kenny Hynes, and Mary Wilson. See Third Amended Complaint at 1-2 (Doc. 93).

Originally Posted by kstew43 (Post 1328416)

The ADA is enforcing that. TV will just have to come up with a way to make this work for everyone...not just for some.....they will remedy this....i'm sure of it.... the lawsuit just lit a fire under there butts....

Originally Posted by IADCathy (Post 1328557)

It is obviously about this guy and those behind him wanting to make big money in a lawsuit. There are volunteer signers in The Villages... some will volunteer their services and some might charge. When a deaf young man joined the group I work with for high-functioning mentally handicapped we were able to get signers from an organization in The Villages, but eventually were not needed as our new club member was a lip-reader. The only priority for us was to make sure he could see us face-to-face as we ran activities. The LLC has ramps, and bathrooms, etc. for the handicapped. I attended a computer class where one student had a special service dog next to her the whole time. It is hard for me to believe that any amount of classes this man wanted to attend could not have had a signer. I could have gotten one for him! How much accommodation beyond that is a big question. Sounds to me like this individual should have retired where he came from so he could attend Gaulladet College in Washington, D.C. I am so angry to think that the action of this man and his followers could have dealt such a blow to our retirement community.

Originally Posted by Villageswimmer (Post 1328567)

Supposedly the lawsuit was filed eight years ago....a slow, smoldering fire.

Sort of strange this offended group didn't go public to get support from fellow Villagers? The injustices could have been righted. If motive is an attempt to get money, it would be to their benefit to keep it quiet. Just sayin...

Originally Posted by trichard (Post 1328571)

Looks like it may have been filed when the new administration took office in D.C.

Originally Posted by trichard (Post 1328570)

I believe he is a graduate of Gaulladat College and lives on the golf course in the Village of Largo.

Originally Posted by blueash (Post 1328457)

Everyone should read the court record, all of it. The court specifically held that the ADA did NOT apply in this case, rather it decided that the "section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act ("RA"), 29 U.S.C. § 794, et seq." was the law which may or may not apply in this case.

The court very specifically rejected all claims that the clubs and rec centers etc are subject to the issues raised by the plaintiffs.

In fact the case revolves over the use of Federal Dollars by the Charter School Corporation in its operations. The use of the Federal Dollars makes it subject to Federal regulations. The court left for a jury to decide whether the cost of sign language interpreters was an undue financial burden for the Lifelong Learning College.



They did try using a speech to text Dragon program but it produced a useless output.

The court held that it was up to a jury to decide

.

And contradicting the claim in the paper that they did everything they could to accommodate the needs of the deaf



And that the cost to provide interpreters according to the defense would be



Did the developer get $64,000/yr of benefit by being able to advertise the LLC as a selling point for The Villages? Could the LLC charge the Developer a $64,000 per year fee for using the name and description of that program and then redirect that advertising income to handicapped services? Seems to me like a tiny additional expense for the Morse empire and a significant loss of a marketing tool.

So there it is. Apparently the Charter School Corporation decided not to go to trial and attempt to win the case but rather closed the LLC. I don't know from the record whether that means the plaintiffs are dismissing their suit or intend to go forward seeking damages for their case. It would seem unlikely they would drop the case as then the LLC could simply reopen under the same conditions, unless of course there was also a cash settlement [speculation]

Originally Posted by Taltarzac725 (Post 1328604)

I tried reading that case and felt like someone trapped in a maze. I wonder how long the Judge took to write this decision?

Originally Posted by ditka41 (Post 1328586)

I am equally disappointed in those who brought the lawsuit and the fact that it was not publicized by our local newspaper. Perhaps it is because doing away with the college would have been a negative to some potential buyers of property here. If so, keeping the lawsuit quiet would be in the same category as the fact that our "gated" community gives a false sense of security. Both are negatives, and we generally don't know about it until too late. How many people would have made the choice to buy here if they knew about either or both in the last eight years? (Please don't flame me with the "due diligence" thing.) The Villages' real estate "promoters" should at least disclose pending situations that are undesirable. Is that the reason that they are not actual real estate agents?