ADA Compliance for Local Governments

The Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 requires that most local government entities perform a self-evaluation of their facilities and programs, services, and activities (PSA) to identify physical and programmatic access to persons with disabilities and prepare an ADA Transition Plan to lay out a plan for removing those barriers over time. Evaluations are required within both public areas and employee areas that are common use and involve reviews for compliance with applicable standards developed by the U.S. Access Board and others. The City of Lakewood, Ohio, recognized the need to be compliant with these requirements and enlisted the assistance of DLZ Ohio, Inc. to prepare their ADA Transition Plan. DLZ worked closely with City staff and the ADA Transition Plan Task Force, a group comprised of City staff and residents, with many of the residents having a disability. The ADA Transition Plan for Lakewood was completed in the fall of 2023 and the City is currently implementing recommendations to address identified barriers. This presentation will review the specific ADA requirements for local governments, provide details about the scope of the project completed for the City of Lakewood, and the current and planned steps for implementation of the Transition Plan by the City as they move to eliminate barriers to access to City programs. Guest Host: APA Ohio