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Feds might sue Corpus Christi over palm trees
http://www.kristv.com/story/31561953/feds-might-sue-city-over-palm-trees
CORPUS CHRISTI -
The federal government might sue The City of Corpus Christi over three palm trees lining a section of Airline Road.
The trees are on the sidewalk outside the Gulfway shopping center.
Local activist Jack Gordy says the placement of the trees discriminates against disabled people.
He filed a complaint with the Department of Justice over a year ago, alleging the city is violating the Americans with Disabilities Act.
Just go over there and you can see, it's incredibly difficult (perhaps impossible) for someone in a wheelchair to get past those palm trees on the sidewalk.
They take up an awful amount of room.
"I just don't think, I don't think it's right," says Gordy, who's late wife used a wheelchair.
After he filed his complaint, the DOJ offered Gordy mediation.
He and the city tried to settle his complaint through a third party attorney. It was a process that failed a few months ago.
Now, according to a letter the DOJ sent Gordy, the department can "... pursue further investigation and/or litigation of the complaint."
"If nothing else, I hope they (DOJ) file a lawsuit," Gordy says.
The city says the trees are ADA compliant, since there are alternative routes people in wheelchairs can take.
Presumably, the shopping center parking lot would be one, or simply going to the other side of the street.
"I don't think that's reasonable," Gordy says.
He particularly doesn't love the idea of using the parking lot, since that parking lot can get pretty busy, especially on weekends.
The Americans with Disabilities Act generally says a sidewalk has to be three feet wide for wheelchairs to get through.
The space between the trees and the edge of the sidewalk is less than three feet.
http://www.kristv.com/story/31561953/feds-might-sue-city-over-palm-trees
CORPUS CHRISTI -
The federal government might sue The City of Corpus Christi over three palm trees lining a section of Airline Road.
The trees are on the sidewalk outside the Gulfway shopping center.
Local activist Jack Gordy says the placement of the trees discriminates against disabled people.
He filed a complaint with the Department of Justice over a year ago, alleging the city is violating the Americans with Disabilities Act.
Just go over there and you can see, it's incredibly difficult (perhaps impossible) for someone in a wheelchair to get past those palm trees on the sidewalk.
They take up an awful amount of room.
"I just don't think, I don't think it's right," says Gordy, who's late wife used a wheelchair.
After he filed his complaint, the DOJ offered Gordy mediation.
He and the city tried to settle his complaint through a third party attorney. It was a process that failed a few months ago.
Now, according to a letter the DOJ sent Gordy, the department can "... pursue further investigation and/or litigation of the complaint."
"If nothing else, I hope they (DOJ) file a lawsuit," Gordy says.
The city says the trees are ADA compliant, since there are alternative routes people in wheelchairs can take.
Presumably, the shopping center parking lot would be one, or simply going to the other side of the street.
"I don't think that's reasonable," Gordy says.
He particularly doesn't love the idea of using the parking lot, since that parking lot can get pretty busy, especially on weekends.
The Americans with Disabilities Act generally says a sidewalk has to be three feet wide for wheelchairs to get through.
The space between the trees and the edge of the sidewalk is less than three feet.
