[HISTORY: Adopted by the City Council of the City of Coldwater
5-27-2014 by Ord. No. 778. Amendments noted where applicable.]
(a)
In furthering
the policy of the State of Michigan as expressed in its Constitution
and other Laws, in order that the safety and general welfare, peace
and health of all the inhabitants of the City may be ensured, it is
hereby declared the policy of the City of Coldwater, Michigan, to
assure equal opportunity to all residents, regardless of race, color,
religion, national origin or ancestry, sex, creed, or physical disability
to live in decent, sanitary, healthful, standard living quarters.
(b)
It is
the policy of the City of Coldwater that no owner, lessee, sublessee,
assignee, managing agent, or other person, firm or corporation having
the right to sell, rent, lease (or otherwise control) any housing
accommodation and/or real property within the City, or any agent of
these, shall refuse to sell, rent, lease, or otherwise deny to or
withhold from any person or group of persons such housing accommodations
and/or real property because of race, color, religion, national origin
or ancestry, sex, creed, or disability of such person or persons or
discriminate against any person or persons because of race, color,
religion, national origin or ancestry, sex, creed or disability in
the conditions, terms, privileges of the sale, rental or lease of
any housing accommodation and/or real property or in the furnishing
of facilities and/or services in connection therewith.
(c)
Relocation
shall be carried out in a manner that will promote maximum choice
within the community’s total housing supply; lessen racial,
ethnic, and economic concentrations; and facilitate desegregation
and racially inclusive patterns of occupancy and use of public and
private facilities.
Unless a different meaning clearly appears from the context,
the following terms shall have the meaning as described in this section
and as used in this chapter.
Housing which is in sound, clean, and weathertight condition
in conformance with applicable local, state, and national codes.
Any difference expressed in any way toward a person or persons
in the terms of the sale, exchange, lease, rental or financing for
housing accommodation and/or real property in regard to such sale,
exchange, rental, lease or finance because of race, color, religion,
national origin or ancestry, sex, creed, or disability of such person.
Any person, institution or business entity of any kind which
loans money to persons and receives as security for said loans a secured
interest of any kind in the real property of the borrower.
Includes any building, structure, or portion thereof which
is used or occupied, maintained, arranged or designed to be used or
occupied as a home, residence or sleeping place of one or more human
beings, or any real estate so used, designed or intended for such
use.
Any person/persons who hold legal or equitable title to,
or own any beneficial interest in, any real property or who hold legal
or equitable title to shares of, or hold any beneficial interest in,
any real estate cooperative which owns any real property and/or housing
accommodations.
Any person, partnership, association, corporation and/or
agent thereof, who for a fee or other valuable consideration offers,
sells, purchases, exchanges or rents, or negotiates for the sale,
purchase, exchange or rental of a housing accommodation and/or real
property of another, or collects rent for the use of housing accommodation
and/or real property of another.
Any real estate, vacant land, building, structure or housing
accommodations within the corporate limits of the City of Coldwater,
Michigan.
It shall be unlawful for any owner of real estate, lessee, sublessee,
real estate broker or salesman, financial institution or employee
of the financial institution, advertiser, or agent of any or all of
the foregoing, to discriminate against any person or persons because
of their race, color, religion, national origin or ancestry, sex,
creed, or disability with regard to the sale, exchange or rental,
or any dealing concerning any housing accommodation and/or real property.
In addition to the foregoing, it shall also be unlawful for
any real estate broker or employee thereof, owner or other person,
or financial institution dealing with housing or real property in
the City of Coldwater, Michigan:
(a)
To discriminate against any person in the availability of or the
price, terms, conditions, or privileges of any kind relating to the
sale, rental, lease, or occupancy of any housing accommodation or
real property in the City or in furnishing of any facilities or services
in connection therewith.
(b)
To publish or circulate, or cause to be published or circulated,
any notice, statement or advertisement, or to announce a policy, or
to use any form of application, for the purchase, lease, rental or
financing of real property, or to make any record of inquiry in connection
with the prospective purchase, rental or lease of such real estate,
which expresses directly or indirectly any discrimination as to race,
color, religion, national origin or ancestry, sex, creed or disability
of any person.
(c)
To discriminate in connection with lending money, guaranteeing loans,
accepting mortgages or otherwise obtaining or making available funds
for the purchase, acquisition, construction, rehabilitation, repair
or maintenance of any housing accommodation and/or real property.
(d)
To solicit for sale, lease, or listing for the sale or lease, of
any housing accommodation and/or real property on the grounds of loss
of value because of the present or prospective entry into any neighborhood
of any person or persons of any particular race, color, religion,
national origin or ancestry, sex, creed, or disability.
(e)
To distribute or cause to be distributed, written material or statements
designed to induce any owner or any housing accommodation and/or real
property to sell or lease his or her property because of any present
or prospective change in the race, color, religion, national origin
or ancestry, sex, creed, or disability of persons in the neighborhood.
(f)
To make any misrepresentations concerning the listing for sale or
the anticipated listing for sale or the sale of any housing accommodation
and/or real property for the purpose of inducing or attempting to
induce the sale or listing for sale of any housing accommodation and/or
real property by representing that the presence or anticipated presence
of persons of any particular race, color, religion, national origin
or ancestry, sex, creed, or disability in the area will or may result
in the lowering of property values in the block, neighborhood or area
in which the property is located.
(g)
For an owner to solicit any real estate broker to sell, rent or otherwise
deal with such owner's housing accommodations and/or real property
with any limitation on its sale based on race, color, religion, national
origin or ancestry, sex, creed, or disability.
(h)
For an owner to refuse to sell, rent, or otherwise deal with any
housing accommodation and/or real property because of race, color,
religion, national origin or ancestry, sex, creed, or disability of
the proposed buyer or tenant.
Whoever violates any of the provisions of this chapter shall,
upon a finding of responsibility for a civil infraction, be subject
to a fine of not less than $100 nor more than $1,500. Each day a violation
continues shall constitute a separate violation. This section shall
in no way abrogate or impair the right of the City of Coldwater, Michigan,
to specifically enforce, by any legal means, any of the provisions
of this chapter.
All ordinances and parts thereof in conflict herewith are expressly
repealed and are of no further force and effect.
The invalidity of any section, clause, or provision of this
chapter shall not affect the validity of any other portion of this
chapter.
This chapter shall take effect upon publication in accord with
law.
