An Accessibility Review is an evaluation of a property’s compliance with applicable federal, state, and local accessibility regulations. The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) is a federal regulation that was passed in 1990 with no “grandfathering” clause for older facilities. Other state and local building accessibility codes also apply. The most recent enforceable standards for compliance with the ADA are the 2010 ADA Standards for Accessible Design (Standards). The 2010 Standards set minimum requirements for newly designed and constructed or altered State and local government facilities, public accommodations, and commercial facilities to be readily accessible to and usable by individuals with disabilities. Other regulations include the Fair Housing Amendments Act and the Uniform Federal Accessibility Standards.
Accessibility Reviews can be completed for existing facilities, pre-construction plan reviews for new construction, and barrier removal review and corrective design for plan check. An accessibility review includes an evaluation of the paths of travel throughout the exterior and interior portions of a property, as well as accessible design of parking spaces, ramps, stairs, public spaces, restrooms, signage, guestrooms, residential dwelling units, and other special uses.
Accessibility Reviews can be performed on a building to check compliance against the following regulations:
Accessibility screening is routinely incorporated into Property Condition Assessments. The ASTM E2018 Standard for Property Condition Assessments provides the option of screening for ADA or Federal Fair Housing concerns, but additional assessment can be performed depending on the needs of the user. Detailed accessibility reviews including a CASp report and certification for properties located in the state of California can be performed as well.
