A settlement was announced Thursday in a longrunning lawsuit on behalf of senior citizens living in allegedly unsafe conditions in Cathay Manor, a 16-story apartment building in Chinatown.
Two groups — CA–Neighborhood Legal Services of Los Angeles and Asian Americans Advancing Justice Southern California announced the agreement.
Despite receiving federal subsidies to provide safe housing for low-income seniors, the owners and managers of Cathay Manor engaged in a yearslong pattern of abusive behavior, the Los Angeles Superior Court lawsuit filed against CCOA Housing Corp. and Don Toy alleged. Problems escalated significantly during the summer of 2021, when both elevators broke down, forcing disabled seniors to climb low-lit, dangerous stairwells and leaving others trapped in their apartments for weeks, the suit stated.
“For a long time, we felt ignored and forgotten,” Cathay Manor resident and plaintiff Wai Wing Ng said. “Some of us could not leave our apartments, and others had to risk our safety just to go down the stairs. Now the building is safer, repairs have been made and we feel respected again.”
In their previous court papers, the landlord’s attorneys denied the tenants’ allegations and said any damages they had “may have been caused in whole or in part by the negligence or fault of others.”
A resolution was reached in January with the plaintiffs collectively receiving a six-figure compensation, the plaintiffs’ attorneys said.
“This settlement marks a turning point for nearly 200 low-income seniors who endured dangerous and unacceptable living conditions for far too long,” NLSLA attorney David Pallack said. “No one, especially elders and people with disabilities, should be forced to climb dark stairwells, live without basic services or fear being trapped in their homes.”
Through the lawsuit, the residents obtained compensation for the harm they experienced as well as accountability and lasting changes that have made their homes safe again, according to Pallack.
The majority of residents at Cathay Manor are elder Chinese immigrants, according to Catherine Hwang, impact litigation staff attorney at the organization Asian Americans Advancing Justice Southern California.
According to the suit filed in September 2021, the tenants spent months trying to call attention to the broken elevators and other problems in the building, including a non-functioning one and only laundry room. The complaint had about 200 tenant plaintiffs.
After the lawsuit was filed, the elevators and laundry room were repaired, along with other longstanding habitability issues, according to the plaintiffs’ attorneys, who additionally said HUD launched an investigation into the nonprofit that owned the building and its CEO, resulting in a $1.5 million fine and a mandate that the owner sell the building within a year.
The building was sold in June 2023.
Cathay Manor’s new ownership and management have made needed repairs faster, according to the plaintiffs’ attorneys.