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Anaheim reaches settlement in Honda Center disability-access cases
Two federal lawsuits alleged violations under the Americans with Disabilities at the city-owned arena.
http://www.ocregister.com/articles/honda-635239-center-settlement.html
BY ART MARROQUIN / STAFF WRITER
Published: Sept. 16, 2014 Updated: Sept. 17, 2014 7:15 p.m.
Changes will soon be made to parking, online-ticket reservations and employee training at the Honda Center to accommodate visitors with special needs under a settlement reached in two federal lawsuits that alleged the city-owned facility violated the Americans with Disabilities Act.
Even though the Anaheim City Council quietly approved the settlement this month, the terms were not disclosed because the document has not been signed by all the parties, a city spokeswoman said. The City Council also agreed to pay an unspecified amount of attorney fees to the plaintiffs as part of the settlement.
“I think this was a good result for the Honda Center, which will be improved for people with disabilities so that they can have access to good seats during concerts and games,” said Patricia Barbosa, the plaintiffs’ lawyer.
City spokeswoman Ruth Ruiz declined to comment on the settlement, as did Merit Tully, a spokesman for Anaheim Arena Management, the private company that operates the Honda Center.
Along with providing additional accessible parking spaces, the Honda Center will be required to provide concession counters that are low enough to serve people in wheelchairs, Barbosa said.
Restrooms will also be rearranged to provide better access, and the arena’s employees will be trained to be more sensitive when serving people with disabilities.
The settlement will also require the Honda Center to sell seats online to visitors with disabilities, who had to previously arrange for tickets by calling the box office. It was unclear when the city and the Honda Center will be required to complete the changes.
Plaintiffs Arnie and Marilynn Pike and Christie Rudder filed the first lawsuit in 2012, saying the facility had insufficient parking for disabled visitors and that they experienced problems accessing several areas of the Honda Center during several events. Arnie Pike uses a service dog, and both he and Rudder use wheelchairs. They both suffered strokes, leaving them with limited use of their arms.
Federal and state court records show Arnie Pike has filed a dozen similar ADA lawsuits since 2006 and Rudder has filed nine such cases.
“You aren’t aware of the problems until you’re in a wheelchair or a walker,” said Marilynn Pike of Placentia.
“Friends stopped going to the Honda Center with us because the tickets set aside for us at the box office were so lousy, so this needed to be done,” Pike said. “The ADA has been around for a long time, and we still see accessibility issues out there.”
Sandy and Gabriel Taylor filed a separate lawsuit in January, saying that they are little people who have a condition known as achondroplasia dwarfism, which makes it difficult for them to stand or walk for long periods.
The lawsuit said that the Honda Center employees refused to help them with Gabriel Taylor's scooter and that they had to leave it at a ground-level office during a Ducks game, even though their seats were in the top level.
Contact the writer: 714-704-3769 or amarroquin@ocregister.com
Two federal lawsuits alleged violations under the Americans with Disabilities at the city-owned arena.
http://www.ocregister.com/articles/honda-635239-center-settlement.html
BY ART MARROQUIN / STAFF WRITER
Published: Sept. 16, 2014 Updated: Sept. 17, 2014 7:15 p.m.
Changes will soon be made to parking, online-ticket reservations and employee training at the Honda Center to accommodate visitors with special needs under a settlement reached in two federal lawsuits that alleged the city-owned facility violated the Americans with Disabilities Act.
Even though the Anaheim City Council quietly approved the settlement this month, the terms were not disclosed because the document has not been signed by all the parties, a city spokeswoman said. The City Council also agreed to pay an unspecified amount of attorney fees to the plaintiffs as part of the settlement.
“I think this was a good result for the Honda Center, which will be improved for people with disabilities so that they can have access to good seats during concerts and games,” said Patricia Barbosa, the plaintiffs’ lawyer.
City spokeswoman Ruth Ruiz declined to comment on the settlement, as did Merit Tully, a spokesman for Anaheim Arena Management, the private company that operates the Honda Center.
Along with providing additional accessible parking spaces, the Honda Center will be required to provide concession counters that are low enough to serve people in wheelchairs, Barbosa said.
Restrooms will also be rearranged to provide better access, and the arena’s employees will be trained to be more sensitive when serving people with disabilities.
The settlement will also require the Honda Center to sell seats online to visitors with disabilities, who had to previously arrange for tickets by calling the box office. It was unclear when the city and the Honda Center will be required to complete the changes.
Plaintiffs Arnie and Marilynn Pike and Christie Rudder filed the first lawsuit in 2012, saying the facility had insufficient parking for disabled visitors and that they experienced problems accessing several areas of the Honda Center during several events. Arnie Pike uses a service dog, and both he and Rudder use wheelchairs. They both suffered strokes, leaving them with limited use of their arms.
Federal and state court records show Arnie Pike has filed a dozen similar ADA lawsuits since 2006 and Rudder has filed nine such cases.
“You aren’t aware of the problems until you’re in a wheelchair or a walker,” said Marilynn Pike of Placentia.
“Friends stopped going to the Honda Center with us because the tickets set aside for us at the box office were so lousy, so this needed to be done,” Pike said. “The ADA has been around for a long time, and we still see accessibility issues out there.”
Sandy and Gabriel Taylor filed a separate lawsuit in January, saying that they are little people who have a condition known as achondroplasia dwarfism, which makes it difficult for them to stand or walk for long periods.
The lawsuit said that the Honda Center employees refused to help them with Gabriel Taylor's scooter and that they had to leave it at a ground-level office during a Ducks game, even though their seats were in the top level.
Contact the writer: 714-704-3769 or amarroquin@ocregister.com