Are church interiors required to be handicapped accessible to all areas used for functions?

[debodun]

What is the name of your state? New York (upstate)

I took my aunt, who has mobility issues and uses a walker, to a church bazaar which was being held in the church basement. Inside there was no stair lift or elevator so she could get down to that area. There was no mention in the flyer that it was not accessible to people who used mobility assists.

 

[ajkroy]

What state?

 

[cbg]

Churches are exempt from the Americans with Disabilities Act.

 

[FlyingRon]

And even if they weren't, the ADA doesn't mandate such unconditionally. Existing buildings that are public accommodations only require barrier removal if "readily achievable."

 

[not2cleverRed]

What is the name of your state? New York (upstate)

I took my aunt, who has mobility issues and uses a walker, to a church bazaar which was being held in the church basement. Inside there was no stair lift or elevator so she could get down to that area. There was no mention in the flyer that it was not accessible to people who used mobility assists.

While I realize that this was upsetting for you and your aunt, no law was broken.

Older buildings retrofit access to the extent that the budget allows, and many congregations are highly motivated to do such retrofits, due to the age of congregants.

I suggest that you contact the church and express your concern. While, in the short run, this will have no immediate effect, it may help them to reprioritize their future plans. Point out that this is an issue for strollers as well, for example, and express that you did not find the experience welcoming.

Sometimes otherwise nice people are ableist out of ignorance.

 

[debodun]

I looked up the church online and got their email address and sent them a message about their limited mobility access. This was the reply:

We are seriously looking into an elevator but may not happen for a year or so.

 

[PayrollHRGuy]

I looked up the church online and got their email address and sent them a message about their limited mobility access. This was the reply:

We are seriously looking into an elevator but may not happen for a year or so.

That is a reasonable reply.

 

[cbg]

And more than the law requires of them.

 

[Shadowbunny]

Additionally, the purpose of a church is to be a house of worship, not to sell Aunt Sally's crocheted pot-holders. I'm not sure that the inability to access the bazaar should even be an issue.

 

[FlyingRon]

Additionally, the purpose of a church is to be a house of worship, not to sell Aunt Sally's crocheted pot-holders. I'm not sure that the inability to access the bazaar should even be an issue.

That's rather irrelevant. As a house of worship, they are exempted. As a "seller of Aunt Sally's crocheted pot-holders" they are delving into the category of public accommodation. The disabled have a right to avoid discrimination when there is a readily achievable way to avoid the barriers.

 

[Taxing Matters]

That's rather irrelevant. As a house of worship, they are exempted. As a "seller of Aunt Sally's crocheted pot-holders" they are delving into the category of public accommodation.

The bazaar was a fund raiser for the church held in the church itself. That does not convert the church into a place of public accommodation. The Department of Justice (DOJ), which enforces Title III of the ADA (those that apply to places of public accommodation) explained this in the preamble to its ADA Title III regulations (as quoted by the DOJ in a letter responding to an inquiry about this very issue):

[T]he ADA's exemption of religious organizations and religious entities controlled by religious organizations is very broad, encompassing a wide variety of situations. Religious organizations and entities controlled by religious organizations have no obligations under the ADA. Even when a religious organization carries out activities that would otherwise make it a public accommodation, the religious organization is exempt from ADA coverage. Thus, if a church itself operates . . . a private school, or a diocesan school system, the operations of the . . . school or schools would not be subject to the ADA or [the title III regulations]. The religious entity would not lose its exemption merely because the services provided were open to the general public. The test is whether the church or other religious organization operates the public accommodation, not which individuals receive the public accommodation's services.​

(Bolding added). As you can see from the part I bolded, that church sale, even if it were to make it a place of public accommodation if done by a nonreligious organization, will not convert an event run by a church into a place of public accommodation. However, if a nonreligious organization rents space in a church for its activities, that nonreligious organization will still be subject to the ADA.