Letter to the Editor: Americans With Disabilities Act Can't Be Ignored

It was with much disappointment that I read the about how the has failed to comply with new regulations regarding the Americans with Disabilities Act .

The Borough has had since November of 2010 to make upgrades to the pool. Instead, they choose to make . As of May 18, 2012, the federal government has extended the deadline for compliance to Jan. 31, 2013.

This inaction on the part of the Borough reflects a troubling trend in this area by both municipal bodies to embrace their responsibilities under the ADA. As both an aquatics instructor and someone who has a disabled adult in their life, I think that the choice to go with lifts for the pool instead of a ramp that anyone can use is wrong. If someone needs to use a lift to enter the pool, it will draw unnecessary attention when getting in and out. The ADA is meant to help disabled people not only to have access, but to live as mainstream of a life as possible.

A while back I sat through a very troubling discussion at a meeting for the on Reading Road. I was dumbfounded when Council President Glenn Kern had the audacity to ask why handicapped parking was even necessary, since people are going out to exercise anyway. This is the same man who .

If that isn't bad enough, there are at least two members who currently sit on Hellertown Borough Council who are involved with and .

There is also a question if the door handles on the front doors of the township building are ADA-compliant. The township has refused to answer my question about this. 

The ADA states that door hardware must not require tight grasping, tight pinching or twisting of the wrist to operate, but that is exactly what the front doors on the township building require to open. 

In this day, when there are many types and ages of disabled people found in a community, the Americans with Disabilities Act cannot be ignored and compliance must not be an afterthought, as it seems to be. Communities must be a place where all types of people are accepted and can live as normally as possible.

Stephanie Brown

Lower Saucon Township