Pittsburgh still falls short on accessibility for those with disabilities, advocates say
‘Getting in the door is the most critical step’
Nearly 30 years since the Americans with Disabilities Act became law, advocates estimate that scores of Pittsburgh establishments remain inaccessible to people with limited mobility, restricting their job prospects, day-to-day routines and community involvement.
The problem is typically a single step — a step up from the sidewalk to a business’s front door that can prove an impossible obstacle for people in wheelchairs, residents told city council this week. Council pledged to dig into the question, first at a public meeting that’s yet to be scheduled.
“Everyone will keep an open mind, try to stretch their boundaries,” Councilwoman Deborah Gross said Wednesday, when more than 15 speakers approached council over the issue.
Many shared the same request: that the city require businesses undergoing renovations to prioritize an accessible entrance as part of accommodations for people with disabilities. The federal ADA often mandates that a portion of renovation expenses go toward such provisions.
As local practices stand now, advocates said, many redone businesses incorporate accessible facilities indoors but without introducing a zero-step entrance. The thought may not occur to proprietors, speakers said.
“If you can’t get in to a buy a pizza, then you can’t get in to work there, either,” said D.J.
Stemmler, a founding member at the Accessible Pittsburgh advocacy group.
The organization wants the city Department of Permits, Licenses and Inspections “to comply with ADA just like everybody else does,” Ms. Stemmler said. While PLI upholds the overall expectation for accessible accommodations, it doesn’t enforce a priority under the ADA for eliminating entrance barriers first, she said.
Maura Kennedy, the PLI director, said that’s because the federal government made clear that state and local agencies cannot enforce the ADA. Enforcement of the law falls to the federal Department of Justice, she said.
The DOJ did not immediately respond to a Pittsburgh Post-Gazette inquiry Thursday. Ms. Kennedy said city officials agree that prioritizing accessible entrances “is a terrific goal” — and they support it.
“We as a city definitely agree with [the] goals of making all structures and all businesses more accessible. Unfortunately, both federal and state law limit our ability to make changes on that front,” Ms. Kennedy said.
In particular, she said, the state government has refused to let municipalities make local modifications to an accessibility code that’s adopted at the state level. The city is lobbying for changes — such as giving priority to accessible entrances — as the state rewrites its building codes, Ms. Kennedy said. “We’ve invited the advocates to join with us in that effort.”
Reached Thursday, the state Department of Labor & Industry said the city needs to meet minimum requirements under the Uniform Construction Code, or UCC, the statewide building standards. But “they would not have the authority to completely rewrite the code for their own purpose,” department spokeswoman Theresa Elliott said in an email. “They can expand upon the minimum requirements if they wish as an optin location.”
Advocates maintained that other municipalities have adopted provisions beyond the UCC with state approval. They’ve been lobbying Pittsburgh on accessibility for years, they said, taking the matter public this week as the city considers other code changes that would enable online permit applications.
“I think the city here is really the real roadblock. The businesses have been working with the advocates, who’ve been pushing this issue,” said Jennifer Garman, the government affairs director at the Disability Rights Pennsylvania nonprofit. “It’s been a really collaborative experience.”
Activists said they don’t want businesses to pay more for accessible accommodations — they just want the money to go first toward an accessible front entrance.
“Getting in the door is the most critical step to making that business accessible,” said Paul O’Hanlon of Squirrel Hill, a semi-retired attorney. “Right now, we have a whole lot of accessible bathrooms that I can’t get into.”