BUSINESSES CAN GET EXPERT HELP WITH DISABILITY ACCESS: ASK A DISABLED PERSON

Did you know that sometimes the cheapest way to make your business accessible is just to ask someone with experience and wisdom on the subject: the person with a disability. Not satisfied yet? Get a second opinion from a disability advocacy group. It's that easy. But so is asking for directions, but most men wouldn't think of doing that. Now that I've got your attention ... .

Did you know that the Americans With Disabilities Act of 1990 would never have been necessary if people did what they knew was right from their first encounter with a person with a disability? Following World War II, needs of disabled veterans were the catalyst for the idea of making facilities accessible to the handicapped. However, it wasn't until both the Korean and Vietnam wars that the passion toward equal access became rampant in the late 1960s and early 1970s. This was when returning disabled veterans started enrolling in the nation's colleges and universities. They wanted the same inclusion in life they fought so hard to preserve for others. It's a shame their country let them down.

Did you know that architects, dating back thousands of years, were trained to hierarchically differentiate spaces vertically? It has been hard to change this way of thinking to include accommodations for the disabled. Many times, cost and economics look to be the negative motivators. But does easy access mean only to the disabled?

Let's look at the convenience of cars today. There are more drive-up windows where nobody has to get out of cars. There is the Internet, where almost everything can be bought or sold without leaving home. How many non-disabled people use automatic doors at local stores, own automatic garage-door openers and remote controls to turn things on and off and use elevators instead of using stairs? These same people, for the most part, are athletic and can be seen jogging on the streets of our cities for exercise. How many non-disabled people must use all the strength they can muscle to push against doors at doctors' offices and other public buildings? If non-disabled people want the same things as persons with disabilities, why are the architects and builders listening? With all the beautiful lever hardware available, why are round knobs still being used? This only one of the many aesthetically beautiful alternatives available to architects and builders. Cost: That's the answer I get. Have you really checked out the cost of lever handles versus round knobs?

Let's look at the economics of accessibility. The Americans With Disabilities Act mandates places of public accommodation must eliminate all barriers "easy" to remove, and employers must make "reasonable" accommodations to allow people with disabilities to perform "essential" functions of a job. The law, of course, was written by lawyers and was passed to benefit lawyers. Why is this? Because people are so different, their needs are different and people are people. We think too much or too hard on something very simple. So the Americans With Disabilities Act is a case-by-case matter and, thus, must be litigated. Can employers think of how much is spent on lawyers and court costs that could have been spent on "reasonable" accommodation? If employers and businesses would ask people with disabilities what their needs are, it could be made simple and cost-effective. Fear and misunderstanding of the law are far more disabling to employers and businesses that make unnecessary or misguided changes than having to ask a person with a disability what could help them. Most Fortune 500 companies find hiring persons with disabilities to be the most economically effective move they ever made. They're the ones that ask the person with a disability what they need on a case-by-case basis.

All over town there are buildings that might appear accessible but are not. I know one building in town with a wheelchair-accessible bathroom on the second floor, but there are only stairs leading to the second floor. That is the only restroom in the place. Why wasn't it built downstairs? In the planning stages, could architects meet with persons with disabilities to check problems like this before they happen? I know of only one person in town who has approached me for help before a building went up.

Another case in point: a concrete ramp so steep that even the person pushing a wheelchair had to huff and puff his way up the incline not to mention the exhilarating ride back down. There are many like that in town. If only that business had consulted with people who needed the accommodation before it wasted its money. It is a waste of concrete, time and dollars that could have been avoided. A ramp should not be any higher than one inch for every foot of length. But nobody asked the right person.

Did you know there are tax incentives on the federal and state level that could help with the cost of making your business accessible? Section 44 of the Internal Revenue Service Code grants eligible small businesses an annual tax credit up to $5,000 for expenditures incurred. Last July, a new Missouri tax credit was made available to make your business more accessible to people with disabilities. It's called the Small Business Disabled Access Tax Credit. Semo Alliance for Disability Independence has brochures that explain these tax benefits. Your accountant has access to these and other available tax credits. All you need to do is ask.

I have spoken to many aging Baby Boomers without previous disabilities who complain of how hard doors have become to open. I know those who have become temporarily disabled and now understand how hard it is to park their cars or walk up stairs. If we want to see more tourism and these visitors consist of aging Baby Boomers, we need to look at the lost revenue of businesses that are not user friendly.

Semo Alliance for Disability Independence is not an enforcement agency. It is an advocacy agent. We seek to educate the community we serve on how to meet the needs of everyone, not just a few. You don't go to a lawyer for help with indigestion. You don't go to a doctor for help with a real-estate abstract. And you don't go to a Realtor with a car problem. Bottom line: You go to a person with a disability to find out how you can become more accessible for a person with a disability. This is just to get you started thinking in the right direction.

Maryann "Miki" Gudermuth is the executive director of Semo Alliance for Disability Independence, 121 S. Broadview Plaza, Suite 12, in Cape Girardeau. SADI's telephone number is 651-6464.