A college student who uses a wheelchair can move forward with his lawsuit against Towson University and a dormitory developer over a dorm he describes as unsuitable for disabled students.
A federal judge denied a request from Towson and Capstone Development Corp., which built Millennium Hall in 2000, to dismiss student Mark Kuchmas? lawsuit, and rejected the argument that the window for litigation closed in 2002.
“This court holds that a public university has a continued responsibility … to provide accessible housing to individuals with disabilities and that the statute of limitations began to run not at the completion of construction of Millennium Hall but rather at the rental of the inaccessible unit,” U.S. District Judge Richard Bennett wrote in an opinion filed recently.
Frank Axell, manager of Millennium Hall, a private dorm on university land, told Kuchmas he would have to wait to view an accessible apartment after it was vacated, so Kuchmas signed a lease for the spring 2006 semester without seeing the apartment, according to the lawsuit. When Kuchmas toured the unit on the first day possible in January 2006, he couldn?t turn his wheelchair in the bathroom and shower.
“In addition, the configuration of the desk area, the height of the shower seat and the difficulty opening doors raised accessibility concerns for Kuchmas,” the lawsuit states.
The lawsuit seeks an unspecified amount of money and asks that the university and Capstone, the nation?s largest private dormitory builder, provide housing accessible to students with disabilities.
Kuchmas, of Nottingham, suffers from a degenerative neuromuscular condition called Friedreich?s ataxia and attends the Community College of Baltimore County in Essex.
“He?s pretty upset about the whole thing,” said Andrew Levy, Kuchmas? attorney.
“He?s mad at Towson. Our position is that Towson cannot wash its hands of the matter.”
Towson is near completion of a second dormitory built by Capstone and has plans for a third.
Attorneys for Towson and Capstone didn?t return phone calls seeking comment.
