Blog
Elevators
You have an older two-story commercial building and the question is whether you are required to install an elevator. The answer to this, of course, is it depends. If your building has less than 3,000 SF per floor or is a 2-story building, generally an elevator is not required. But this is based upon what […]
Single Restrooms – What needs to be done?
Let’s say you have single accommodation restrooms in a pre-ADA building which is a place of public accommodation. There are several items to consider. What you end up doing depends on whether or not you have done any alterations to the building and how much you have spent or plan on spending. And do realize, […]
Alterations To Existing Buildings — How Much Extra Do I Have to Spend?
© 2012 Janis Kent, FAIA, Architect, CASp. Updated February 2021 You are altering an existing building. You know that the portion being altered is required to meet today’s standards of accessibility, but is that all that needs to be done? The answer to that question for the most part is no. Per the ADA when […]
Cabinetry and Sales & Service Counters
Whether you have a reception counter in an office, a reservation counter at a restaurant, or a sales counter in a store, it does need to be accessible. Since many of these items do not require a building permit, the business owner is responsible and often times relies upon the cabinetry fabricator to make it […]
Readily Achievable Barrier Removal
Janis Kent, FAIA, Architect, CASp © August, 2012. Updated February 2021 There is a common misconception – because a building is old, one is ‘grandfathered in’ so nothing needs to be done to make it accessible. This is not true. Building and business owners are indeed obligated to make places of public accommodation more accessible. […]
The Existing Swimming Pool Dilemma
The new 2010 ADAS has caused much confusion with swimming pool access for facility people and building owners in existing facilities. Although it has been in the Guidelines since 2004 the confusion appears to stem from what is considered Readily Achievable for this specific element for places of public accommodation. The Department of Justice (DOJ) […]
Carpets and Area Rugs
You want your lobby, waiting room, or seating area to have a more residential or intimate feel to the space. So you place a lovely area rug on top of the wall-to-wall carpet or hard surfaced floor. No problem, right? Well, yes there is. The issue is, that even though the size is much larger […]
Parking Access Aisles
© Janis Kent, Architect, FAIA, CASp 2012. Updated February, 2020 Your facility is having a special event in front of the building and you want to display merchandise with refreshments right outside the entry so everyone coming in can participate. Since this is only a one day or weekend event it’s okay to use all […]
Queueing
You are expecting crowds to line up due to a sale, so you get out the speed rails and place them on the sidewalk to better organize people while waiting to get in. Rather than have the line as a single queue you arrange it to have several switchbacks. You measured it off and are […]
Restrooms for Restaurants in California
This article has been updated for 2019 California Retail Food Code here » Do you have an older restaurant, coffee shop, cafe, or snack bar located in California and are wondering what to do about the restroom(s)? There are several things you should be aware of. There were no requirements for restrooms for your patrons […]