mark handler
SAWHORSE
The 76 station at 25th & California is latest target of ADA complaints
http://richmondsfblog.com/2011/01/31/25th-california-gas-station-is-latest-target-of-ada-complaints/
The 76 gas station located at the corner of 25th Avenue and California is the latest neighborhood target of an ADA lawsuit, where plaintiffs are seeking damages for accessibility violations.
The gas station’s owner, Sam Zgoul, received a 2 page letter in mid-December from the law office of Nick Avtonomoff in Mill Valley, CA. The letter is addressed to several stakeholders in the property including Manuel’s Auto Repair which operates on the lot, and ZipCar, who uses four parking spaces on the property to store and rent out cars.
The letter was accompanied by a 19 page proposed complaint, outlining the grounds for the class action suit against the business owners. The complaint has not yet been filed with Superior Court.
The crux of the proposed complaint is about 1 parking space – a disabled parking space to be precise. In 2009, ZipCar began using the 4 spaces on the California Street side of the gas station to store their rental cars. At that time they took over the existing disabled parking space that was on the lot, bringing the disabled space count to zero.
By law, the gas station is required to have one, designated van accessible parking space for its disabled customers. The proposed complaint alleges that “restrooms, cashier, food and drink are inaccessible because their is no van accessible parking on the premises.”
In other words, because they can’t park adequately, disabled customers are unable use the restrooms, access the cashier, or purchase food and beverage. The complaint does not allege any violations with the restrooms or mini store on the premises – only that there is no designated space for disabled parking.
“I never have any problems with handicap customers,” Zgoul said. He works at the station 7 days a week from 6am until 10pm, and says he was never approached by a customer with complaints or noticed any customers having issues.
Nevertheless, Avtonomoff asserts that the plaintiffs in the complaint “consist of disabled persons who have used, or attempted to use, the facilities owned, operated or maintained by defendants.”
Zgoul took ownership of the gas station just one year ago, which already included the ZipCar franchise. He was not aware of any problems the previous gas station owner had with disabled customers.
Things started to get strange about a month before the letter arrived. Zgoul says a man was on the block every day, several times a day, taking photographs. The man would often come with his wife to gas up their Ford Explorer.
Zgoul asked the wife why her husband was taking pictures. “Oh don’t listen to him, he’s crazy,” she told Zgoul. Zgoul last saw the couple a few days before the letter arrived.
Turns out the mysterious photographer was probably an investigator for Avtonomoff, who mentions in the letter that they have “numerous photos, taken over many months by counsel and investigators.”
Since the letter arrived, ZipCar did add a disabled parking space on the south side of the gas station’s lot which is reserved for disabled customers. According to ADA law, the spot includes the required “Van Accessible” signage.
Zgoul says he has not been contacted since the letter arrived and he has not contacted Avtonomoff because he does not have a lawyer. “I don’t have the money to hire a lawyer,” he told me. The letter states that Avtonomoff “will only accept, and welcome, contacts by licensed attorneys.”
While ADA law caps damages at $4,000 for each violation, the potential financial hit from the suit could be much higher for Zgoul and his co-defendants.
According to the complaint, plaintiffs are seeking “recovery of statutory compensation for damages in the sum of $4,000 each, per occurrence, general damages, including damages for humiliation, embarrassment, and emotional distress. Plaintiff(s) claim punitive damages. Plaintiff(s) further seek recovery for reasonable attorney fees, expenses and costs.”
If a suit is filed, Zgoul will be required to file a response within 30 days. But Avtonomoff and his clients seem most interested in working out a settlement and avoiding trial, as evidenced by this portion of the letter:
“Therefore we request that you have your counsel contact this office… Your counsel should have a working knowledge of the factual and legal matters raised in the Complaint, and be prepared to discuss settlement. We expect all matters, including remedies, damages, attorney fees and costs, to be resolved within 60 days.”
The 76 gas station is yet another in a long list of Richmond District businesses that have been hit with ADA lawsuits; several of them have gone out of business as a result.
In reaction, the city’s Small Business Office created an ADA guidelines document for small businesses, and began better publicizing a loan program via Opportunity Fund that is available to businesses needing to make ADA upgrades.
In keeping with the other complaints, this latest is also targeted at a business owner whose primary language is not English. Zgoul, an American citizen, immigrated to the Bay Area from Jordan twenty years ago, but freely admits that his English is “not so good.” He told me that understanding the letter and the complaint has been a challenge.
“I think the Mayor should stop this kind of thing,” Zgoul said when referring to the string of ADA lawsuits that have been putting the squeeze on small businesses. Several of Zgoul’s disabled customers have vowed to show up and support him at the courthouse if the case does go to trial.
Zguol says the potential lawsuit not only threatens his business, but also his family. “I’m feeding 11 mouths from this station. If something happens to me, I’m going to close. Because I can’t afford it.”
http://richmondsfblog.com/2011/01/31/25th-california-gas-station-is-latest-target-of-ada-complaints/
The 76 gas station located at the corner of 25th Avenue and California is the latest neighborhood target of an ADA lawsuit, where plaintiffs are seeking damages for accessibility violations.
The gas station’s owner, Sam Zgoul, received a 2 page letter in mid-December from the law office of Nick Avtonomoff in Mill Valley, CA. The letter is addressed to several stakeholders in the property including Manuel’s Auto Repair which operates on the lot, and ZipCar, who uses four parking spaces on the property to store and rent out cars.
The letter was accompanied by a 19 page proposed complaint, outlining the grounds for the class action suit against the business owners. The complaint has not yet been filed with Superior Court.
The crux of the proposed complaint is about 1 parking space – a disabled parking space to be precise. In 2009, ZipCar began using the 4 spaces on the California Street side of the gas station to store their rental cars. At that time they took over the existing disabled parking space that was on the lot, bringing the disabled space count to zero.
By law, the gas station is required to have one, designated van accessible parking space for its disabled customers. The proposed complaint alleges that “restrooms, cashier, food and drink are inaccessible because their is no van accessible parking on the premises.”
In other words, because they can’t park adequately, disabled customers are unable use the restrooms, access the cashier, or purchase food and beverage. The complaint does not allege any violations with the restrooms or mini store on the premises – only that there is no designated space for disabled parking.
“I never have any problems with handicap customers,” Zgoul said. He works at the station 7 days a week from 6am until 10pm, and says he was never approached by a customer with complaints or noticed any customers having issues.
Nevertheless, Avtonomoff asserts that the plaintiffs in the complaint “consist of disabled persons who have used, or attempted to use, the facilities owned, operated or maintained by defendants.”
Zgoul took ownership of the gas station just one year ago, which already included the ZipCar franchise. He was not aware of any problems the previous gas station owner had with disabled customers.
Things started to get strange about a month before the letter arrived. Zgoul says a man was on the block every day, several times a day, taking photographs. The man would often come with his wife to gas up their Ford Explorer.
Zgoul asked the wife why her husband was taking pictures. “Oh don’t listen to him, he’s crazy,” she told Zgoul. Zgoul last saw the couple a few days before the letter arrived.
Turns out the mysterious photographer was probably an investigator for Avtonomoff, who mentions in the letter that they have “numerous photos, taken over many months by counsel and investigators.”
Since the letter arrived, ZipCar did add a disabled parking space on the south side of the gas station’s lot which is reserved for disabled customers. According to ADA law, the spot includes the required “Van Accessible” signage.
Zgoul says he has not been contacted since the letter arrived and he has not contacted Avtonomoff because he does not have a lawyer. “I don’t have the money to hire a lawyer,” he told me. The letter states that Avtonomoff “will only accept, and welcome, contacts by licensed attorneys.”
While ADA law caps damages at $4,000 for each violation, the potential financial hit from the suit could be much higher for Zgoul and his co-defendants.
According to the complaint, plaintiffs are seeking “recovery of statutory compensation for damages in the sum of $4,000 each, per occurrence, general damages, including damages for humiliation, embarrassment, and emotional distress. Plaintiff(s) claim punitive damages. Plaintiff(s) further seek recovery for reasonable attorney fees, expenses and costs.”
If a suit is filed, Zgoul will be required to file a response within 30 days. But Avtonomoff and his clients seem most interested in working out a settlement and avoiding trial, as evidenced by this portion of the letter:
“Therefore we request that you have your counsel contact this office… Your counsel should have a working knowledge of the factual and legal matters raised in the Complaint, and be prepared to discuss settlement. We expect all matters, including remedies, damages, attorney fees and costs, to be resolved within 60 days.”
The 76 gas station is yet another in a long list of Richmond District businesses that have been hit with ADA lawsuits; several of them have gone out of business as a result.
In reaction, the city’s Small Business Office created an ADA guidelines document for small businesses, and began better publicizing a loan program via Opportunity Fund that is available to businesses needing to make ADA upgrades.
In keeping with the other complaints, this latest is also targeted at a business owner whose primary language is not English. Zgoul, an American citizen, immigrated to the Bay Area from Jordan twenty years ago, but freely admits that his English is “not so good.” He told me that understanding the letter and the complaint has been a challenge.
“I think the Mayor should stop this kind of thing,” Zgoul said when referring to the string of ADA lawsuits that have been putting the squeeze on small businesses. Several of Zgoul’s disabled customers have vowed to show up and support him at the courthouse if the case does go to trial.
Zguol says the potential lawsuit not only threatens his business, but also his family. “I’m feeding 11 mouths from this station. If something happens to me, I’m going to close. Because I can’t afford it.”
