ONE-THIRD OF CHICAGO CTA STATIONS STILL NOT DISABILITY COMPLIANT IN 2015

CHICAGO (WLS) --The ABC7 I-Team looked into why one-third of CTA 'L' stations still do not have elevators, making it difficult or impossible for some passengers to get to and from the trains.

report By Chuck Goudie and Barb Markoff, ABC7 News Chicago | Nov. 18, 2015
The I-Team received complaints about dangers due to limited access at the Clinton Blue Line station downtown, an antiquated stop with no elevator and lots of stairs.

CTA officials say they are aware of these issues and are working to make all CTA train stations fully accessible, but passengers say they are losing this uphill battle.

Kenetha Robinson is a regular CTA rider, but says she usually avoids the Clinton stop.

"I only do it when I have to transfer to Metra because this is the one closest to Union Station but this one has the most stairs," Robinson says. "There's no handicap accessible. There's nothing!"

The I-Team received complaints from passengers about problems they have navigating these steep stairs at the Clinton stop. Over the past few months we visited the station numerous times to watch people come and go.

"The Blue Line is super convenient from my house but this stop is always such a pain. I'm already kind of huffing and puffing and I'm in decent shape," says rider Rebecca Hinsdale.

We witnessed dozens of people struggling to carry their suitcases. Some had a hard time just walking up so many stairs. One man slipped and almost fell while carrying his child in a stroller.

"This is the closest station to the Amtrak line," says Kath Rooney, a tourist. "It's an easy walk here but an elevator would be very helpful for those of us with suitcases and of course those who can't use the stairs."

Elevators at two nearby stops were out of service on the days we inspected. Tourists visiting from London say they couldn't believe there was no elevator at the station.

"We were walking around," says Imogen Ptacek, "and there were just stairs going up."

There are 146 CTA train stations - 100 of which are accessible in compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act, which became law 25 years ago. That leaves 46 stops with no elevators.

"We agree 100 percent with our customers that all rail stations should be fully accessible to our customers," says CTA spokesperson Tammy Chase. "That's a goal. We've been working on that for a very long time."

CTA says funding and space constraints are obstacles, especially at the 57-year-old Clinton station.

"It would need significant work and reconfiguration to accommodate an elevator and meet all of the safety and zoning codes," says Chase.

But even some newly renovated stations, such as the Blue Line Damen stop, have limited access to the platform and no elevator.

"Because it's surrounded by historic properties, because the layout of the station, it's nearly impossible to do without acquiring properties around," Chase says.

An elevator is being added at the Addison station, part of an $8-million modernization project.

"We have to prioritize which stations we can make accessible next," Chase says. "It depends on federal funding, state funding."

Many passengers told the I-Team the Clinton stop should be a priority based on its proximity to the Greyhound, Amtrak and Metra stations.

"It seems pretty logical that this station would be a priority to make easily accessible," Hinsdale says.

"We recognize customers do have difficulty. We do understand. That's why having an elevator at every station is so important," says Chase.

The Americans with Disabilities Act required that key stations be accessible by certain years and the CTA met those requirements.

http://abc7chicago.com/news/uphill-battle-one-third-of-cta-stations-not-disability-compliant/1090632/
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PLEASE REMEMBER 

U.S. Attorney's Office to Review Chicago and Suburban Restaurants for Compliance with Americans with Disabilities Act

from a Press Release. Also if any additional info might be needed, or you want help/advice on how to get involved in this LONG OVERDUE accessibility of restaurants in the Chicago area. Contact Jim at Ability Chicago Info at jimwatkins@abilitychicago.info.

Department of Justice

U.S. Attorney’s Office

Northern District of Illinois

---

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Wednesday, November 18, 2015

U.S. Attorney's Office to Review City and Suburban Restaurants for Compliance with Americans with Disabilities Act

CHICAGO — The United States Attorney’s Office in Chicago has launched a review of restaurants in the city and suburbs to ensure compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act, authorities announced today.

The purpose of the review is to ensure that the restaurants are accessible to persons with disabilities.  The initiative is undertaken in accordance with the congressionally-mandated responsibility to review compliance with the ADA.  The U.S. Attorney’s Office hopes to work cooperatively with restaurant owners who are found to be non-compliant.

“The Americans with Disabilities Act is an important civil rights law,” said Zachary T. Fardon, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois.  “Restaurant owners must conform to its accessibility provisions, and we will pursue all reasonable measures to ensure compliance.”

This year marks the 25th anniversary of the passage of the ADA.  The Act prohibits discrimination on the basis of disability in places of public accommodation, including restaurants, and requires such places to be “designed, constructed, and altered in compliance with the accessibility standards” established by the ADA’s implementing regulations.

As part of the program, an initial selection of restaurant owners in Chicago and the suburbs will be asked to complete a survey pertaining to their restaurant’s accessibility.  Federal investigators may then conduct on-site inspections of the facilities to confirm survey responses and to evaluate compliance with ADA regulations.  The initial round of surveys is being sent to the restaurants today.

Non-compliant owners and operators will initially have the option to voluntarily agree to upgrade their facilities to meet ADA requirements.  However, owners and operators found to be engaging in a pattern or practice of discrimination – and those who fail to enter voluntary compliance agreements – may face a civil lawsuit and be subject to monetary penalties and civil fines.

Additional information about the ADA can be found at www.ada.gov, or by calling the toll-free information line at the Civil Rights Division of the Justice Department at (800) 514-0301 (voice) or (800) 514-0383 (TTY).

http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndil/pr/us-attorneys-office-review-city-and-suburban-restaurants-compliance-americans

Tammy Duckworth Emphasizes Importance Of Accessibility At ADA 25 Chicago’s Disability Inclusion Opportunity Summit

from a Press Release| Nov 16, 2015
U.S. Congresswoman Tammy Duckworth, Illinois 8th district

Twenty-five years after the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) was signed into law, Congresswoman Tammy Duckworth this morning addressed a crowd of roughly 300 government, civil and business leaders at the opening session of ADA 25 Chicago’s Disability Inclusion Opportunity Summit. The Congresswoman’s remarks focused on the importance of accessibility and improvements that still need to be made to ensure equal opportunities in education, public transit, the workplace, and elsewhere for people living with disabilities.

“The ADA is essential in helping Wounded Warriors like me and millions of other Americans to move forward with our lives,” said Congresswoman Duckworth. “It allows me to be physically active, get my pilot’s license back, and serve in Congress—but we still have a lot of work to do. More than a quarter of America’s disabled population still lives in poverty, which is why this Summit’s focus on improving education and employment access is so critical.”

According to ADA 25 Chicago, more than 1 in 10 Illinoisans have a disability and they are significantly less likely to be employed than Illinoisans without disabilities. To address this problem and increase access, Congresswoman Duckworth introduced the Transit Accessibility Innovation Act with Congressman Jim Langevin (RI-02) to encourage public transit systems to provide improved service for individuals with disabilities. The Congresswoman has also cosponsored the Transitioning to Integrated and Meaningful Employment (TIME) Act to help people with disabilities move from segregated, sub-minimum wage positions into higher-wage, more meaningful jobs.

The Congresswoman continued: “What good is a job or a degree without any way to get to a meeting or class? And why would you need a degree if the only jobs that are available are poorly-paid, menial tasks? We all deserve the opportunity to learn, make a living, support our families and live our own American Dream. I look forward to working in Congress and with the talented people behind ADA 25 Chicago to protect rights and improve opportunities for people with disabilities and to help make Chicagoland one of the most accessible regions in the nation.”

http://duckworth.house.gov/index.php/media-center/press-releases/753-duckworth-emphasizes-importance-of-accessibility-at-ada-25-chicago-s-disability-inclusion-opportunity-summit

Justice Department Settles with McLennan County, TX over Accessibility of Its Services

from a Press Release.

Department of Justice

Office of Public Affairs

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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Tuesday, November 17, 2015

Justice Department Settles with McLennan County, Texas, Regarding Accessibility of County Services Under the Americans with Disabilities Act

The Justice Department announced today an agreement with McLennan County, Texas, to improve access to all aspects of civic life for people with disabilities.  McLennan County and the Department of Justice reached an agreement under Project Civic Access (PCA), the department’s wide-ranging initiative to ensure that cities, towns and counties throughout the country comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).  Under the agreement, the county is required to ensure that people with disabilities can take full advantage of the county’s services, programs and activities.  This year, as we celebrate the 25th anniversary of the ADA, it is an ideal time to highlight the impact that the enforcement of this statute has made in the lives of people with disabilities.

“Twenty-five years after the passage of the ADA, we have seen tremendous strides in accessibility nationwide,” said Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Vanita Gupta, head of the Civil Rights Division.  “Because of the ADA, local governments like McLennan County are taking responsibility to provide citizens with access to programs, services and activities.  Agreements such as this one will have a remarkable impact on the everyday lives of individuals with disabilities and allow them to fully participate as citizens of McLennan County.”   

Under the agreement, McLennan County will develop and implement a new county website that is compliant with the web content accessibility guidelines (WCAG) version 2.0; the county will also designate a web accessibility coordinator who will be responsible for coordinating the county’s web accessibility compliance.  The county will also ensure that its polling locations are accessible to persons with disabilities.  In addition, the county will modify its emergency operations plan to ensure that it is accessible to all persons with disabilities in the event of an emergency.  McLennan County will also adopt and implement its Sheriff’s Department Effective Communication Policy for People Who are Deaf or Hard of Hearing.  Finally, the agreement requires the county to ensure that its courthouses, buildings, parking lots, parks and toilet rooms are accessible to persons with disabilities.

This agreement was reached under Title II of the ADA, which prohibits discrimination against individuals with disabilities by state and local governments.  The three-year agreement will remain in effect until Nov. 16, 2018.  The department will actively monitor compliance with the agreement.       

For more information about the ADA, today’s agreement, the Project Civic Access initiative or the ADA Best Practices Tool Kit for state and local governments, individuals may access the ADA Web page at http://www.ada.gov/civicac.htm or call the toll-free ADA Information Line at (800) 514-0301 or (800) 514-0383 (TTY).

McLennan County Settlement Agreement 

http://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/justice-department-settles-mclennan-county-texas-regarding-accessibility-county-services

Backlash Surrounds Misclassification of Service Animals — who are working dogs, not pets

Just about everywhere Carl Bessent goes, Nerice is at his side.

On walks around Coeur d’Alene, inside stores and restaurants and to the movies, the 7-year-old black Labrador retriever guides Bessent, a retired attorney who lost sight in one eye and went legally blind in the other as a newborn.

And almost everyone he encounters knows the law permits his trained service animal to accompany him in public. But what irritates Bessent these days is all the people who exploit the law and masquerade their pets as service animals.

Carl Bessent and his guide dog Nerice in Coeur d’Alene. Carl is legally blind and is concerned about the growing problem of impostor or poorly trained service animals and the problems they create for legitimate service animals. KATHY PLONKA kathypl@spokesman.com

Read more here: http://www.idahostatesman.com/news/local/article43095210.html#storylink=cpy

solid article by BY SCOTT MABEN for The Spokesman-Review | Nov. 5, 2015

“My guide dog had almost two years of training, and somebody just slaps a vest on their dog and says, ‘OK, it’s a service dog,’ ” Bessent said. “That’s an insult.” 

We’ve all seen them: the woman with a trembling Chihuahua tucked in her arm as she peruses produce at the grocery store, or the man walking through the mall with a frisky puppy on a leash. In some cases those may be actual service dogs or ones in training. Or they might be impostors.

“People are pushing the boundaries, just like they do with anything,” said Linda Goodman, administrator of the Idaho Human Rights Commission.

Service animals are working animals, not pets, according to federal guidelines.

“The work or task a dog has been trained to provide must be directly related to the person’s disability,” the U.S. Department of Justice says. “Dogs whose sole function is to provide comfort or emotional support do not qualify as service animals under the ADA.”

Use of companion animals for well-being or comfort has grown much more common, but those animals are not trained to perform a task related to a disability, said Nancy Hill, regional director of SCRAPS, the Spokane County Regional Animal Protection Service.

“Yet these individuals often refer to their dogs as service dogs if asked,” Hill said. “Business owners are confused by what a service dog is and what questions they may ask.”

Mikelyn Ward is co-leader of the Spokane chapter of Puppies of Promise, a club that raises puppies for Guide Dogs for the Blind, a leading training school.

“The law is pretty ambiguous in that it says the dog has to be trained to perform a task,” Ward said. “But it doesn’t say how you prove that dog is trained. … It doesn’t say a dog has to go through a certified school of any kind or professional trainers. And so people can just say what they want about the dog.”

She and other trainers working with the pups in public places run into supposed service dogs that seem to have little training or socialization.

“They will bark and growl at other dogs or at people. It’s a problem for us,” she said. “We are doing our best to follow the rules and be polite to people and make the presence of our dogs as un-invasive as we can. It’s annoying that our efforts are undermined by people that we’re pretty sure don’t have a service dog.”

PEOPLE ARE PUSHING THE BOUNDARIES, JUST LIKE THEY DO WITH ANYTHING.

Linda Goodman, Idaho Human Rights Commission

EARLY RETIREMENT

People who pretend their dogs are trained service animals, or who mistakenly think their dogs fit the legal definition of one, are doing real damage, say advocates for people with disabilities. For one, they often disrupt the work of authentic service dogs.

Carl and Jeanette Bessent, who live in downtown Coeur d’Alene, recently visited a nearby art gallery. Inside, another couple had a pair of Yorkshire terriers that wore generic, red “service dog” vests — items one can easily order online. The dogs began barking at Nerice and one pulled away and ran toward her, distracting Nerice from her job.

“Clearly they are not legitimate service dogs,” Carl Bessent said.

A few days before that, the couple had a frightening encounter on a visit to a Green Bluff orchard that is open to the public. Two St. Bernards belonging to the owner attacked Nerice, Bessent said.

“She wrapped herself around me to protect me from the St. Bernards, and left herself completely exposed to be attacked,” he said. “She is trained to protect me. She is not trained to protect herself.”

Bessent helped fend off the growling and lunging dogs until an employee could restrain them. The farm’s owner told them his dogs were there to keep other dogs off his property.

“We tried to explain she is permitted to go anywhere by law,” said Jeanette Bessent. “He said, ‘This is my place, and I can have these dogs here.’ ”

The Bessents complained to SCRAPS, which is investigating the Green Bluff incident and researching what laws may apply.

Nerice was not hurt. But repeat encounters like that can ruin a guide dog, trainers say.

It happened to Robert White, a 45-year-old Navy veteran of the Gulf War who lives in Otis Orchards. He was blinded and developed post-traumatic stress disorder from his combat experience in the early 1990s, and a guide dog assists him with both conditions.

His first black Lab, Thayer, had to be retired early after several attacks by other dogs, including at the Spokane Transit Authority’s downtown bus plaza and once by a pit bull aboard an STA bus, White said.

“He just wouldn’t work anymore. He wouldn’t get back on a bus,” he said.

White is on his second black Lab, named Neil, provided by Guide Dogs for the Blind. And the problems for him continue.

“Going into the stores and even on the buses, all these dogs that are barking and carrying on — they’re not well-mannered. People don’t try to rein their dogs back at all,” he said. “And sometimes it will be in a crosswalk where it’s a dangerous situation for me.”

After being subjected to repeated attacks, a guide dog can become highly distracted or even aggressive, “or it will be rendered so anxious it will not be able to perform around another dog. It will freeze up, it will break off its line, it won’t guide effectively,” said Marc Gillard, a licensed guide dog instructor and support center service specialist with Guide Dogs for the Blind.

The organization regularly receives feedback from clients who experience unnecessary burdens that stem from exploitation of service animal laws, Gillard said.

“That person may be given a really rough reception or be asked to provide documentation or evidence, which isn’t legal, because the (business) person has been burned before by illegitimate service animals,” he said.

White believes abuse of the service animal law is tainting the public’s perception of guide dogs and making his life more difficult.

“Some restaurants are even trying to refuse me service because they’ve had so many people come in with unruly dogs,” he said. “They just don’t want to see any of them.”

FLORIDA IS CRACKING DOWN ON FAKE SERVICE ANIMALS WITH A NEW LAW THIS YEAR, MAKING IT A SECOND-DEGREE MISDEMEANOR.

A SENSITIVE SUBJECT

Other businesses, worried about crossing a line with the Americans with Disabilities Act, take a don’t-ask approach. Employees are told not to question customers about their animals, even if they suspect it’s not a trained service dog.

But business people do ask plenty of questions of Laura Lindstrand, policy analyst at the Washington Human Rights Commission.

“I get a lot of calls from business owners who have concerns about that issue,” Lindstrand said.

Some are skeptical about smaller dogs or certain breeds — and she informs them that those could be trained service animals. Others call in to ask what they should do about dogs that misbehave or relieve themselves in their place of business, or whose owners feed them table scraps in restaurants.

“A lot of businesses don’t know the law, they don’t know what questions they can ask, and they haven’t trained their employees in that area, so they’re very nervous,” Lindstrand said. “And especially with people who have fake service animals, the people will start saying, ‘You can’t ask me that question, I’m going to sue you,’ and then they get frightened because they’re being threatened.”

THE LAW PERMITS TWO QUESTIONS TO BE ASKED OF ANYONE WHO BRINGS AN ANIMAL INTO A STORE, OFFICE OR OTHER PUBLIC PLACE:

1. IS THE DOG A SERVICE ANIMAL REQUIRED BECAUSE OF A DISABILITY?

2. WHAT WORK OR TASK HAS THE DOG BEEN TRAINED TO PERFORM?

She sees plenty of uncertainty about what is and isn’t permitted, and not just from businesses.

“I think there’s some confusion on the part of some individuals who may be wanting to stretch the definition to include other kinds of pets or companion animals,” Goodman said.

At WinCo Foods, the Boise-based grocer, managers are aware of the two questions they may ask under the law, company spokesman Michael Read said.

“If the individuals say yes and come up with some kind of description of what the animal does, we don’t try to make a judgment on whether or not that seems plausible,” Read said. “But we’re pretty much handcuffed by the law, because that is really all that we can ask. So if they answer appropriately we allow their animal to remain in the store so long as it behaves and is housebroken.”

WinCo does not, however, allow dogs to be placed inside shopping carts. “There are people that try to push that boundary, but there is nothing under the law as we understand it that would require us to allow that practice,” Read said.

Spokane Transit Authority drivers and security guards sometimes will inquire about the service a dog performs for a passenger.

“We can’t pry beyond that because we would be violating people’s privacy rights, and so that’s the question we’re allowed to ask,” STA spokesman Brandon Rapez-Betty said.

If the passenger says the dog is trained to assist them with a disability, “we consider that a service animal and they are allowed to board.”

Drivers can have any animal removed if it’s distracting the operation of the bus or displaying vicious behavior that poses a safety threat to riders. Drivers also should be alerted to any animal that threatens a service dog, he said.

THERE NEEDS TO BE SOME KIND OF CERTIFICATION, SOME GUIDELINES.

Robert White, a blind Gulf War veteran assisted by a guide dog

CERTIFICATION FAVORED

Some think there should be a certification requirement or registry of legitimate service animals to remove any doubt.

“Right now no one has to show any proof that it’s a service dog,” said White, the Gulf War vet. “There needs to be some kind of certification, some guidelines.”

Bessent said he also favors mandatory certification to distinguish service animals from pets. He carries a card that identifies Nerice as a trained guide. “I always have that with me,” he said.

Nerice’s harness also carries the Guide Dogs for the Blind name.

Ward, from Puppies of Promise, favors additional regulation as well. If someone trains their service dog themselves, rather than through a reputable program, perhaps they could submit the dog to a board to certify it’s been properly trained and socialized, she said.

Florida is cracking down on fake service animals with a new law this year, pushed by the state’s restaurant industry, making it a second-degree misdemeanor to pass off an unqualified pet as a service animal. The offense is punishable with up to 60 days in jail and 30 hours of community service for an organization that services people with disabilities

No changes to service animal laws are in the works in Idaho or Washington, state officials say. But a deterrent such as Florida’s or a registry of trained animals are worth considering, said Lindstrand, with the Washington Human Rights Commission.

“It would certainly make my job easier if there was a certification process,” she said. “If we could figure out a way to fund it without it being a detriment to persons with disabilities, it certainly sounds like a good idea.”

THE TWO QUESTIONS

The law permits two questions to be asked of anyone who brings an animal into a store, office or other public place:

1. Is the dog a service animal required because of a disability?

2. What work or task has the dog been trained to perform?

“It’s just two questions. It’s not hard to remember,” said Linda Goodman with the Idaho Human Rights Commission. “If someone comes in with a snake around their neck and they say this is my service animal, you know it’s not. It’s not a dog; we’re done.”

WHAT IS A SERVICE ANIMAL?

Under federal law, a service animal is a dog or miniature horse trained to do work or perform tasks for a person with a disability. That includes guiding the blind, assisting the deaf, pulling a wheelchair, alerting and protecting someone having a seizure, reminding a person with a mental illness to take medication, and calming someone with post-traumatic stress disorder during an anxiety attack. Most are dogs, but a few people use miniature horses because of dog allergies, fear of dogs or the animal’s longer lifespan.

WHERE ARE THEY ALLOWED?

Under the Americans with Disabilities Act, privately owned businesses that serve the public, such as restaurants, hotels, retail stores, taxis, theaters, concert halls and sports venues, are required to allow people with disabilities to bring their service animals onto business premises in whatever areas customers are allowed. The ADA trumps any state or local laws, include health regulations.

http://www.idahostatesman.com/news/local/article43095210.html

Read more here: http://www.idahostatesman.com/news/local/article43095210.html#storylink=cpy

A Wheelchair Ramp Plan At The Virginia Executive Mansion, a former first lady characterizes the ramp as unnecessarily intrusive

 A plan has been proposed to build a handicap accessible ramp outside the building.

A plan to build a wheelchair ramp at the Virginia Executive Mansion is turning into a tussle between old and new Richmond, with Gov. Terry McAuliffe saying the alteration will create a more dignified entrance for disabled guests and a former first lady raising alarm that the ramp needlessly threatens the historic character of the 200-year-old mansion.

By GRAHAM MOOMAW Richmond Times-Dispatch |Nov. 11, 2015
The governor and first lady Dorothy McAuliffe announced the ramp project last month, calling it an improvement on the mansion’s existing method of wheelchair access: an elevator from the basement.

In response, Roxane Gilmore, the wife of former governor and current Republican Presidential Candidate Jim Gilmore, has circulated a letter among historic preservationists in which she characterizes the ramp as unnecessarily intrusive on the nation’s oldest continuously occupied governor’s residence. Several docents, the guides who lead mansion tours, were taken aback when the ramp plan was announced.

“A lot of us are Richmond natives,” said Betty Markham, a docent for 25 years who, like many of the guides, is a retired teacher affiliated with a women’s club. “And we just don’t want to see it defaced.”

The governor’s office has said the proposed ramp fits the mansion’s aesthetic and will be built in accordance with federal standards for historic properties.

“The governor and the first lady are committed to making the people’s Executive Mansion as accessible as possible to all Virginians, especially people with disabilities and wounded warriors,” McAuliffe spokesman Brian Coy said. “They believe that making it possible to enter on the first floor is a good step in demonstrating Virginia’s commitment to accessibility.”

When the ramp project was announced, it was praised by the heads of state agencies that assist people with disabilities and military veterans.

The mansion, designated a state and national historic landmark, already meets federal accessibility guidelines under the Americans with Disabilities Act. Last month late on a Friday afternoon, the McAuliffes, who moved into the mansion in early 2014, announced the ramp as an accessibility “enhancement.”

In her letter, Gilmore, who helped oversee the last major mansion renovation in 1999, said accessibility was a key concern for her and her husband. The ramp, she said, “duplicates the access” of the elevator installed as the highlight of several accessibility upgrades in the 1999 renovation, including specially equipped bathrooms.

“This is a question of being a good steward to one of Virginia’s historic landmarks,” Gilmore, first lady from 1998 to 2002, said in an interview. “Speaking as a former resident, it is your home while you’re there, but it’s kind of temporary. It doesn’t really belong to you. It belongs to the people of the commonwealth.”

Gilmore said she didn’t want to appear critical of the mansion’s current occupants, but given her connections to the mansion — she wrote a book about the 1999 renovation and took TV handyman Bob Vila on a tour for his nationally televised show — she was moved to speak publicly because several people voiced concerns to her.

Schematic drawings show the roughly 23-foot ramp being built alongside the breezeway that connects to a first-floor entrance on the southern side of the mansion. A new pathway to the foot of the ramp would angle through a landscaped section of the yard, passing 8 feet behind one of the mansion’s magnolia trees.

In a correspondence with state officials, Kathleen S. Kilpatrick, executive director of the Capitol Square Preservation Committee, has asked the project overseers to protect the magnolia’s roots and keep trimming to a minimum, find a good spot elsewhere for two Crepe Myrtles that will have to be relocated, ensure that brick patterns match, make the railing stand out from the historic original rather than mimic it, and watch for archaeological finds.

In an interview, Kilpatrick said she felt officials were being responsive to her concerns.

“It’s an ongoing process to achieve a sort of gentle, appropriate, sensitive feature,” Kilpatrick said.

The plan calls for the planting of new shrubs and trees in front of the ramp to soften its appearance.

Close-to-final plans for the ramp have been deemed appropriate by the state Department of Historic Resources. The state Art and Architecture Review Board approved the plan last week, placing it on the consent agenda for noncontroversial business.

But the apparent adherence to technical standards hasn’t stopped the buzz among ramp skeptics.

“We just don’t understand the need for it. It’s just a real unattractive thing for the mansion,” said Markham, who lives in Richmond’s Windsor Farms neighborhood. “You don’t see this at Mount Vernon, the White House, Williamsburg. You don’t see this at other historical places.”

The Federal-style mansion, designed by Alexander Parris and completed in 1813, sits at the northeast corner of Capitol Square. It’s been augmented multiple times in its 202 years, including a major renovation in 1906 that added the north wing, the addition of a breakfast room and library in 1954 and several repairs and improvements to the governor’s private quarters on the second floor.

The renovation during the Gilmore administration, which cost $7.2 million, was focused largely on upgrades to the heating and air-conditioning systems, plumbing and wiring.

Nearly $1 million was spent to build a small addition on the building’s north side containing the new accessibility features, including the elevator.

Former Lt. Gov. John H. Hager, who served during the Gilmore administration, uses a wheelchair because he contracted polio as an adult. Reached by phone Wednesday, Hager called the ramp issue an “interesting little battle,” but declined to comment.

Work on the ramp is expected to start later this year and finish by early 2016. Officials have not yet released a cost estimate.

In her letter, Gilmore, who teaches classics at Randolph-Macon College, said that even if the ramp project is “technically correct” by historic guidelines, taxpayer money could be better used elsewhere due to the existing elevator.

“In reality, the only difference in entry with this new ramp will be that you go to the right, up a ramp in the rain, snow and other weather, instead of being driven down the drive to the left to a covered entrance and an indoor elevator to the first floor,” Gilmore wrote. “The ramp is not an entrance to the front door, and where you enter the house is really no closer to the front of the house than where one enters from the elevator.”

Coy, the governor’s spokesman, said the elevator takes visitors through “what is effectively a mud room in the kitchen.”

“The mansion is a historic place. It’s also a living, breathing family home,” Coy said. “This is just another way that this first family is making it more inviting for more Virginians.”

http://www.richmond.com/news/virginia/government-politics/article_4a935579-5f57-506c-8662-225296be08f8.html

HUD REACHES AGREEMENT WITH MICHIGAN LENDER IN DISABILITY DISCRIMINATION CASE

from a Press Release | Nov. 17, 2015
U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD)

WASHINGTON – The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) today announced a Conciliation Agreement with Mortgage One, Inc., of Sterling Heights, Michigan, resolving allegations of lending discrimination againstan applicant with disabilities.  HUD claimed Mortgage One and loan officer Nancy Doody required the mortgage applicant to provide intrusive and unnecessary documentation regarding his disabilities before approving his FHA-insured mortgage. Read the agreement.

The Fair Housing Act makes it illegal to discriminate in the terms and conditions of a loan to an individual based on a disability, including imposing different application or qualification criteria.

“A person’s qualifications to purchase a home should be the only criteria used to evaluate his or her loan application, not whether they are living with a disability,” said Gustavo Velasquez, HUD Assistant Secretary for Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity. “This agreement reaffirms HUD’s ongoing commitment to ensuring that mortgage lenders treat all applicants fairly.”  

The case came to HUD’s attention when an applicant for a loan with Mortgage One filed a complaint alleging that the lender delayed his application because of his disabilities.  Specifically, the man alleged that before closing on the loan, Mortgage One requested that he provide verification from his doctor that his disability is permanent and/or a letter from the Social Security Administration stating that he would remain on disability for at least three years. 

Under the Conciliation Agreement HUD reached with Mortgage One, the lender will provide monetary relief to the man and notify its loan officers, underwriters, and processors that they may not discriminate against FHA borrowers who derive income from a public assistance program such as Social Security Disability Insurance by seeking personal medical information.

In addition, Doody, the loan processor who handled the man’s application, will attend a Fair Housing Act course regarding the obligations of lenders and their loan officers to comply with federal fair housing laws.

Any person who believes he or she has experienced discrimination may file a complaint by contacting HUD’s Office of Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity at (800) 669-9777 (voice) or (800) 927-9275 (TTY). Housing discrimination complaints may also be filed by going to www.hud.gov/fairhousing, or by downloading HUD’s free housing discrimination mobile application, whichcan be accessed through Apple and Android devices.

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HUD's mission is to create strong, sustainable, inclusive communities and quality affordable homes for all.
More information about HUD and its programs is available on the Internet
at www.hud.gov and http://espanol.hud.gov.

http://portal.hud.gov/hudportal/HUD?src=/press/press_releases_media_advisories/2015/

HUDNo_15-147

Accessible U.S. Currency Note Should Debut in 2020

Americans with visual impairments who are waiting for accessible U.S. currency will have to wait a little longer, reports Perkins Library Director Kim Charlson.

It will be another five years before the Treasury Department is ready to distribute the first currency note with tactile features, said Charlson after returning from the annual conference of the American Council of the Blind(ACB).

“They’re on a timeline for a rollout in 2020,” she said. “The $10 bill is going to be the first bill that comes out with a tactile feature, and as they redesign the other currency notes, they’ll roll them out one at a time.”

Charlson, in her role as ACB president, has been at the forefront of a campaign to modify U.S. paper money to make it identifiable by people who are blind or visually impaired. In 2008, a Federal District Court ruled that the Treasury Department must provide accessible currency notes.

Charlson heard an update on the U.S. Bureau of Engraving and Printing’s (BEP) ongoing efforts to comply with that ruling from BEP Chief Council Sidney Rocke, who spoke in July at the ACB’s annual conference in Dallas, Texas. The news was both promising and discouraging, she said.

“The Bureau is basically back in design determination – trying to figure out what (tactile) element is going to work, and how high it has to be,” Charlson said. “The whole process is monumental, but they are still committed to some sort of tactile feature.”

In 2013, the Perkins Library partnered with the BEP to host a testing session at Perkins’ Watertown campus, inviting patrons who are blind or visually impaired to provide feedback on various tactile elements. Over 40 people from more than 20 cities and towns participated.

Other countries incorporate a variety of features in currency notes to make them accessible, including differently sized bills, high-contrast design, raised print and braille elements. The BEP has considered all kinds of accessibility features, Rocke said at the ACB conference, but is still working to ensure that accessible bills are durable, functional and resistant to counterfeiting.

“It’s very, very complicated,” he said. “We have to work with a lot of folks to make sure that everyone’s interests are protected. But we’re in the process of doing that.”

In the meantime, the BEP is providing currency readers free of charge through organizations like the Perkins Library, which has facilitated the distribution of more than 1,800 iBill Talking Banknote Identifiers to registered library borrowers. The device scans a bill and announces the bank note’s value through voice notification, a beep sequence or pattern of vibrations.

Perkins Library patrons who are visually impaired can request a free iBill currency reader by contacting the library at (617) 972-7240 or (800) 852-3133, or by emailing library@perkins.org.

article by Alix Hackett for Perkins Blind School for the Blind | Aug. 2015
http://www.perkins.org/stories/blog/first-accessible-us-currency-note-should-debut-in-2020

Chicago Theaters, and Museums Enhance Entertainment for Blind, and Deaf

When the lights dim and a play starts, all eyes are on the stage. But what if you can't see it?

nice article by Rachel Crosby for the Chicago Tribune | Aug 9, 2015

How do people who are blind experience a live theater show? A museum exhibit?

"The biggest problem we face is that many people assume people who are blind can't or don't experience theater or other sources of entertainment," said Chris Danielsen, spokesman for the National Federation of the Blind. "And that is not correct."

Yes, they can hear the actors, their motions — the pouring of a glass, the shot of a gun. And they've been going to live shows for a long time, Danielsen said.

But Chicago theater is making the experience better.

Two hours before showtime on a recent morning, pieces of Chicago Shakespeare Theater's "The Little Mermaid" production were strewn about the theater's lobby.

Ariel's long red locks. Flounder the guppy's turquoise and yellow "fin" mohawk. Even the tough snakeskin boots of Sebastian, the crab who conducts.

And 3-year-old Lincoln Rybak was running his fingers over all of it — tapping, squishing, squeezing. The Elmwood Park boy is legally blind, and his parents were participating in the theater's touch tour, an opportunity for patrons with low vision to feel the textured costumes, explore the set and meet the characters before the show.

Touch tours are not new to the city — Chicago's Victory Gardens Theater adopted a program in the 1990s, said Evan Hatfield, Steppenwolf Theatre's director of audience experience. But in the past five years, the city's cultural scene has blossomed with accessibility. He listed 21 local theaters that offer programs like touch tours, audio description, sign language interpretation and live captioning for productions. And that number is growing.

Lincoln's favorite piece was a fantastic sea urchin headpiece; his little hands were grasping the flexible, floppy spines that poke out from its base. He was at a standstill as a group of about 20 children and adults who are blind weaved through the props with family.

"Whoaaaaaaaa," he howled, tugging the thick spines as Jason Harrington, the theater's education outreach manager who heads accessibility programs, explained each piece.

Growth in accessibility is not limited to theaters. Eleven other Chicago institutions including the Lincoln Park Zoo, the History Museum and the Shedd Aquarium pledged to make accessibility better in many ways after the 25th anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act in July, said Christena Gunther, founder of the Chicago Cultural Accessibility Consortium, a group that works as a network for cultural accessibility programs.

Ideas include offering more programs, hiring full-time accessibility managers and finding new ways to reach those with disabilities,

"Accessibility is not just about having a ramp," Gunther said. "Everybody's different, everybody has different needs. Accessibility never reaches an ending point, and that's the challenge but also the fun part."

Once in the theater, Lincoln and the group had full access to a few of the show's set pieces.

On stage was Prince Eric's ship, a piece of Ariel's grotto, a giant sea anemone cushion and Chef Louis' cooking table, covered with "pots and pans and really gross-feeling fish, which you're welcome to touch," Harrington said as he guided the tour.

"Don't they feel awful?" said Sharon Howerton, of Chicago, who is blind and brought her son, daughter-in-law and grandchildren along.

Soon, a handful of the core cast members joined the group "so you get a sense of what they sound like," Harrington said.

There was Ariel, in full attire, who explained the mermaid's curiosity and many costume changes — from a tail to a dress to a wedding gown. King Triton and Eric also joined. And the man who played Sebastian previewed the crab's Jamaican accent. "Ah-ree-el!" he yelled.

While a touch tour undoubtedly "enhances the experience," said Danielsen of the federation for the blind, so does audio description, an explanation of scenes and set changes that are transmitted live to patrons who are blind, through headsets, while the show unfolds on stage. Chicago Shakespeare and about 20 other local theaters offer it already or plan to soon.

It's an accommodation that requires training, finessing and time to perfect, but when done well it can make the play come alive in a new way.

Like the beginning of "The Little Mermaid," when Ariel begins to sing the opening, "A World Above" — a beautiful song, but even better when you know a giant blue fabric like the surface of the ocean is rippling around her as she rises to hip level from beneath the stage, like she's treading water.

Deborah Lewis, vice president of California-based Audio Description Solutions, trained audio describers in Chicago a few weeks ago and said "some people get it, some people don't," but here "everyone got it."

"In Chicago, theaters seem to be helping each other out, giving each other a lot of ideas, and that doesn't happen in a lot of places," she said. "I was so overwhelmed and impressed."

If Chicago theaters are budding, the city's museums are still planting the seeds.

The Art Institute of Chicago offers a touch gallery — a free area where anyone can feel four small sculptures, said Lucas Livingston, the museum's assistant director of senior programs. But those four pieces are only tiny slice of the artwork offered in the building.

The Art Institute also hosts tours where patrons can handle a limited number of 3-D-printed duplicates of objects on display, like plastic copies of ancient mugs, dolls and instruments. Those are helpful not only for the blind but for people with dementia, Livingston said, so they can feel and better engage with each piece. "Everybody loves to learn through touch."

The museum also has five small 3-D-printed duplicates of paintings — helpful, tactile representations of the art on the wall from different genres, since handling can damage original paintings.

"For theater, you have the luxury of knowing who's coming in advance and being able to plan for that, versus at a museum, people are usually just dropping in and you might not know what people are coming to see," said Gunther of the cultural consortium. "The way you can make your institution accessible varies depending on what type of organization you are."

The Art Institute is able to plan for its monthly sign-language tour, which garners about 60 patrons, Livingston said.

Other museums offer audio tours and guided tours — options that cover the bases but do not yet go above and beyond, Gunther said. But they all share an interest in improving.

"I think we're better off than five, 10 years ago," she said, but "this is an ongoing effort. There's always something new and different you can offer at your institution."

To the left of the Shakespeare stage, a pair of sign-language interpreters enthusiastically signed the characters' dialogue — another layer of accessibility for patrons at the show.

Harrington remained in a handful of ears until curtain call, guiding them through live set changes as he watched from a room high above the audience.

He described Prince Eric's castle, Ariel's lavender dress. The way Ursula's evil electric eels moved down aisles and about the theater. And ultimately, Prince Eric's proposal. Their marriage.

"They kiss," Harrington said, just before the couple climbed aboard the ship and sailed backstage. "Lights out, end of play."

http://www.chicagotribune.com/entertainment/theater/ct-touch-tours-theaters-museums-met-20150807-story.html

Copyright © 2015, Chicago Tribune

Online Guides for Caregiving

AARP is offering "Indispensable Guides to Caregiving":

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