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SAWHORSE
Oyster lover sues Gulf Coast restaurants over handicapped access
http://www.sunherald.com/news/local/counties/harrison-county/article89874472.html
GULFPORT
Hope Elly likes her seafood, but claims in lawsuits filed against Half Shell Oyster House in Biloxi, Lucy Buffett’s Lulu’s in Gulf Shores and two other Alabama restaurants that, as a handicapped individual, she is being denied the same access available to able-bodied patrons.
Elly asks federal judges in each case to order that the restaurants be renovated to Americans with Disabilities Act standards. She also wants legal fees and expenses awarded to her law firm, the ADA Group of Montgomery, Ala.
The ADA Group has filed at least 38 lawsuits over handicapped accessibility, all but two of them in Alabama, court records show. This is the firm’s first foray into Mississippi.
Elly’s lawsuits detail the shortcomings of restaurants being sued, down to the distance of the toilet paper dispenser from the wall grab bar in the Half Shell restroom.
Elly says in the Half Shell lawsuit, filed in U.S. District Court in Gulfport, that she visited the restaurant earlier this year.
“Ms. Elly really enjoys the oysters, which she thinks are ‘great,’ ” the lawsuit says. “She also likes the attempted New Orleans atmosphere as well as a place to have good oyster dishes in a little more upscale environment than a lot of oyster places.”
But she can’t sit at the bar or use the hostess counter and, the lawsuit says, there is no handicapped parking space or acceptable route from the parking lot to the restaurant. With no elevator, she is confined to the first floor. Her lawsuit says she has had a series of strokes and relies on mobility aids, but does not specify whether she uses a wheelchair or walker.
Bob Taylor, an owner of the restaurant, said Elly never complained about the accommodations or asked for changes. The lawsuit was his first notice of her dissatisfaction.
In fact, he said, the two-story restaurant has never received a complaint from wheelchair-bound patrons. Taylor said people in wheelchairs dine on the first floor, where they can order any items available. The old building where the restaurant is located does not have an elevator, but does have a handicapped parking space in the small parking lot.
Most parking is on the street in downtown Biloxi, where Half Shell is located. Taylor said The ADA Group also took action against the Half Shell in Mobile, but minor modifications averted a lawsuit.
Taylor said he is looking into Elly’s complaints. He said that he is confident his Biloxi location is safe and ADA-compliant. His restaurant group also has a downtown Gulfport location.
The attorney who filed the lawsuit, Bradley McAdory of the ADA Group, referred questions to senior partner Tracy Birdsong, who did not respond to the Sun Herald’s email request for an interview.
In addition to the Lulu’s lawsuit, Elly has within the past four months sued Sea-n-Suds restaurant on the beach in Gulf Shores and Pelican Pub & Raw Bar on Dauphin Island.
http://www.sunherald.com/news/local/counties/harrison-county/article89874472.html
GULFPORT
Hope Elly likes her seafood, but claims in lawsuits filed against Half Shell Oyster House in Biloxi, Lucy Buffett’s Lulu’s in Gulf Shores and two other Alabama restaurants that, as a handicapped individual, she is being denied the same access available to able-bodied patrons.
Elly asks federal judges in each case to order that the restaurants be renovated to Americans with Disabilities Act standards. She also wants legal fees and expenses awarded to her law firm, the ADA Group of Montgomery, Ala.
The ADA Group has filed at least 38 lawsuits over handicapped accessibility, all but two of them in Alabama, court records show. This is the firm’s first foray into Mississippi.
Elly’s lawsuits detail the shortcomings of restaurants being sued, down to the distance of the toilet paper dispenser from the wall grab bar in the Half Shell restroom.
Elly says in the Half Shell lawsuit, filed in U.S. District Court in Gulfport, that she visited the restaurant earlier this year.
“Ms. Elly really enjoys the oysters, which she thinks are ‘great,’ ” the lawsuit says. “She also likes the attempted New Orleans atmosphere as well as a place to have good oyster dishes in a little more upscale environment than a lot of oyster places.”
But she can’t sit at the bar or use the hostess counter and, the lawsuit says, there is no handicapped parking space or acceptable route from the parking lot to the restaurant. With no elevator, she is confined to the first floor. Her lawsuit says she has had a series of strokes and relies on mobility aids, but does not specify whether she uses a wheelchair or walker.
Bob Taylor, an owner of the restaurant, said Elly never complained about the accommodations or asked for changes. The lawsuit was his first notice of her dissatisfaction.
In fact, he said, the two-story restaurant has never received a complaint from wheelchair-bound patrons. Taylor said people in wheelchairs dine on the first floor, where they can order any items available. The old building where the restaurant is located does not have an elevator, but does have a handicapped parking space in the small parking lot.
Most parking is on the street in downtown Biloxi, where Half Shell is located. Taylor said The ADA Group also took action against the Half Shell in Mobile, but minor modifications averted a lawsuit.
Taylor said he is looking into Elly’s complaints. He said that he is confident his Biloxi location is safe and ADA-compliant. His restaurant group also has a downtown Gulfport location.
The attorney who filed the lawsuit, Bradley McAdory of the ADA Group, referred questions to senior partner Tracy Birdsong, who did not respond to the Sun Herald’s email request for an interview.
In addition to the Lulu’s lawsuit, Elly has within the past four months sued Sea-n-Suds restaurant on the beach in Gulf Shores and Pelican Pub & Raw Bar on Dauphin Island.