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Frank Girardot: ADA suit seeks to take a bite out of Arcadia's Bit
11/16/2011
Mike Mandala knows a little bit about the Americans with Disabilities Act.
And he should.
Mainly because the two Arcadia bars he runs have been targeted by attorneys filing suits. Essentially, the suits allege his taverns violate the federal law designed to help the disabled get access.
You know: handicapped parking spots; extra-wide toilet stalls with metal rails; and signs that point out those amenities.
Mandala, part owner of The Bit on Live Oak and owner of First Cabin on Huntington Drive, was one of several local business owners blanketed with thick sheaves of legal paperwork filed on behalf of plaintiffs represented by H.J. Sims, a San Diego attorney who specializes in ADA law.
Also hit were the Silver Dollar, a car wash, a tattoo parlor and the Royal Oaks Liquor store, Mandala and his business partner, Mike Willman, said.
The suit targeting The Bit alleges plaintiff Sherry Brown encountered 54 violations alone. Sims' suit on behalf of Duane Williams against First Cabin makes similar allegations.
Brown wants between $10,000 and $25,000 to go away.
"This is nothing other than extortion," Willman said. "This is a business in good standing. We're insured, inspected, up to the building and health codes. It's extortion."
Sims did not return a phone call seeking comment Wednesday.
The whole deal is similar to what happened to Audrey and Dan Miller, a West Covina couple who own
Barney's Coffee Shop in Pico Rivera.
The Millers settled out-of-court with plaintiff Salvador Vargas for $1,400 after making something like $40,000 worth of improvements at Barney's.
Last year, Mandala reached an out-of-court settlement after he was slapped with an ADA suit at First Cabin. After spending several thousand on attorneys, architectural plans, and court costs, he settled with a Los Angeles attorney in exchange for a promise the barrister wouldn't go after him again.
That promise obviously didn't extend to other legal sharks in the ADA pond.
So who is Sherry Brown?
Regular patrons like Chuck Lasswell, a resident of Arcadia, never heard of her. For that matter, he's never seen anyone with a wheelchair drinking in The Bit.
"These are the nicest, best people in the world," Lasswell said between tugs on a American-brewed light beer. "I love this bar and all kinds of people are welcomed here."
Lasswell and other patrons at the end of the bar Wednesday called Brown's suit "ridiculous."
Next door at Little Joe's Fresh Mex, owner Felix Padilla worried he might be next. He pointed to a wall full of official certificates and said he pays separate taxes to maintain each one.
Just this year alone, Padilla's annual certification from the county Health Department came with a 100 percent fee increase - up to $1,000 from $500 in 2010.
"These attorneys and the government, they want to run the businesses," Padilla said. "Times are tough. I know they are hurting for money. But the fees and the attorneys are outrageous. Everything keeps going up. I don't know how small business can survive."
Frank C. Girardot is editor of the Pasadena Star-News. Follow him at Twitter.com/FrankGirardot and at Facebook.com/crimesceneblog.
Read more: Frank Girardot: ADA suit seeks to take a bite out of Arcadia's Bit - Whittier Daily News http://www.whittierdailynews.com/news/ci_19353560
11/16/2011
Mike Mandala knows a little bit about the Americans with Disabilities Act.
And he should.
Mainly because the two Arcadia bars he runs have been targeted by attorneys filing suits. Essentially, the suits allege his taverns violate the federal law designed to help the disabled get access.
You know: handicapped parking spots; extra-wide toilet stalls with metal rails; and signs that point out those amenities.
Mandala, part owner of The Bit on Live Oak and owner of First Cabin on Huntington Drive, was one of several local business owners blanketed with thick sheaves of legal paperwork filed on behalf of plaintiffs represented by H.J. Sims, a San Diego attorney who specializes in ADA law.
Also hit were the Silver Dollar, a car wash, a tattoo parlor and the Royal Oaks Liquor store, Mandala and his business partner, Mike Willman, said.
The suit targeting The Bit alleges plaintiff Sherry Brown encountered 54 violations alone. Sims' suit on behalf of Duane Williams against First Cabin makes similar allegations.
Brown wants between $10,000 and $25,000 to go away.
"This is nothing other than extortion," Willman said. "This is a business in good standing. We're insured, inspected, up to the building and health codes. It's extortion."
Sims did not return a phone call seeking comment Wednesday.
The whole deal is similar to what happened to Audrey and Dan Miller, a West Covina couple who own
Barney's Coffee Shop in Pico Rivera.
The Millers settled out-of-court with plaintiff Salvador Vargas for $1,400 after making something like $40,000 worth of improvements at Barney's.
Last year, Mandala reached an out-of-court settlement after he was slapped with an ADA suit at First Cabin. After spending several thousand on attorneys, architectural plans, and court costs, he settled with a Los Angeles attorney in exchange for a promise the barrister wouldn't go after him again.
That promise obviously didn't extend to other legal sharks in the ADA pond.
So who is Sherry Brown?
Regular patrons like Chuck Lasswell, a resident of Arcadia, never heard of her. For that matter, he's never seen anyone with a wheelchair drinking in The Bit.
"These are the nicest, best people in the world," Lasswell said between tugs on a American-brewed light beer. "I love this bar and all kinds of people are welcomed here."
Lasswell and other patrons at the end of the bar Wednesday called Brown's suit "ridiculous."
Next door at Little Joe's Fresh Mex, owner Felix Padilla worried he might be next. He pointed to a wall full of official certificates and said he pays separate taxes to maintain each one.
Just this year alone, Padilla's annual certification from the county Health Department came with a 100 percent fee increase - up to $1,000 from $500 in 2010.
"These attorneys and the government, they want to run the businesses," Padilla said. "Times are tough. I know they are hurting for money. But the fees and the attorneys are outrageous. Everything keeps going up. I don't know how small business can survive."
Frank C. Girardot is editor of the Pasadena Star-News. Follow him at Twitter.com/FrankGirardot and at Facebook.com/crimesceneblog.
Read more: Frank Girardot: ADA suit seeks to take a bite out of Arcadia's Bit - Whittier Daily News http://www.whittierdailynews.com/news/ci_19353560