Partners Fred Galante and G. Ross Trindle, III Secured Resolution of Disputes

On November 15, 2022, Partners Fred Galante and G. Ross Trindle, III secured resolution of disputes with five major residential developers on behalf of client City of Chino, concerning $98 million in bonded work, focusing on accessibility of public improvements under the Americans with Disabilities Act and California state accessibility laws. Five settlement agreements were approved unanimously by the City Council, followed thereafter by unanimous acceptance of previously constructed but not yet approved improvements. The settlements also provided for in-lieu payments by some of the developers, to the City, to off-set updated remediation costs for a select subset of the disputed improvements. Finally, the agreements provided all ongoing and future accessibility improvements by the developers would meet the City’s exacting accessibility standards. This result culminated several years of discussions and negotiations with the developer community, five national and regionally known developers, and the City’s staff to achieve a mutually beneficial resolution that strengthened relationships, did not compromise the City’s commitment to accessibility under state and federal law, and avoided costly litigation.