DJ 192-180-05606 April 24, 1992

Ms. Catherine Richter

San-Suz-Ed RV Park
Post Office Box 387
West Glacier, Montana 59936

Dear Ms. Richter:

This letter is in response to your correspondence regarding

the application of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) to
ground surfaces that are required to be accessible. You appear
to believe that you would Violate the ADA if you followed your
county's requirements for gravel ground surfaces on a public
roadway and in parking spaces in your RV park.

The ADA authorizes the Department of Justice to provide

technical assistance to individuals and entities with rights or
obligations under the Act. This letter provides informal
guidance to assist you in understanding the ADA accessibility
standards. However, this technical assistance does not
constitute a legal interpretation of the statute and it is not
binding on the Department.

If you are a private entity operating a place of recreation

that affects interstate commerce, you are a public accommodation
subject to title III of the ADA and this Department's regulation,
including its ADA Accessibility Guidelines. There are, however,
no specific requirements under the ADA for public roads. Thus,
the county's requirements for the public roadway would not be
inconsistent with the ADA.

As for the parking spaces, the ADA Accessibility Guidelines

require that the access aisle of the accessible parking space be
"stable, firm, slip-resistant." It is true that gravel is
generally not considered to be a complying ground surface for new
construction or alterations. However, because your project was
undertaken before the effective date of the ADA, you should apply
the ADA requirements for existing facilities, not new
construction or alterations.
 -2-
In existing facilities, a public accommodation must remove
barriers when it is "readily achievable" to do so. "Readily
achievable" means easily accomplishable and able to be carried
out without much difficulty or expense. If you determine that it
is readily achievable to add pavement or other suitable binder
treatment to the surfaces of the access aisles of certain of your
parking spaces to provide accessibility, you would be complying
with the barrier removal requirements of the ADA. It is likely
that such action regarding the parking spaces would be permitted
by the county regulations.

I am enclosing a copy of the regulations and a copy of the

title III Technical Assistance Manual prepared by the Department
of Justice. I hope this information is useful to you in
complying with the ADA.

Sincerely,

John R. Dunne
Assistant Attorney General
Civil Rights Division

Enclosures (2)
CARING FOR THE HANDICAPPED and obeying the State
and Federal Accessibility Law brings guilty verdict to the
Richter's of the San-Suz-Ed Trailer & R.V. Park.

ATTENTION HANDICAPPED - DISABLED

& SENIOR CITIZENS
We want you to know - Howard Gipe DID NOT speak up on your behalf!
Sharon Stratton DID NOT speak up on your behalf ! Mary Atkins DID
NOT speak up on your behalf! Your County Planning Board, Mr.
Herbaly and Mr. Greer, who are in charge of this department, DID
NOT speak or ACT IN YOUR BEHALF!

These people and our politicians have not paid any attention to the
Federal and State Laws. These people are DEGRADING our campgrounds
by wanting to use OIL AND/OR THREE-QUARTER INCH ROCKS for you to
walk on and try to get around in your wheelchairs.

"This information will help you to comply with the new

Accessibility Laws:"

- Public accommodations such as restaurants, hotels, theaters,

doctors' offices, pharmacies, retail stores, museums, libraries,
parks, private schools, and day care centers, may not discriminate
against individuals with disabilities.

- Physical barriers in existing facilities must be removed, if

removal is readily achievable. If not, alternative methods of
providing the services must be offered, if they are readily
achievable.

- All new constructions and alterations of facilities must be

accessible.

- Auxiliary aids and services must be provided to individuals with

vision or hearing impairments or other individuals with
disabilities unless an undue burden would result.

- Complaints can be filed with the Attorney General, who may file
lawsuits to stop discrimination and obtain money damages and
penalties.

This information was sent to the San-Suz-Ed by their wheelchair

people that come every year and by Michael J. Regnier, Advocacy
Coordinator of the Summit Independent Living Center Inc.
The San-Suz-Ed has been using these hard packed, clean, gravel
spaces since 1968 and all electric wheelchairs can travel all over
the campground with no assistance from others. They DO NOT track
oil into their 80 to 800 thousand dollar homes on wheels. Oil
and/or 3/4" rocks are degrading.

Montana STATE LAW says all roads must be well drained and graded.

--------------------------------------------

(Handwritten letter) March 30 -

Hello from Beautiful Western Montana

I was told to send you this information

I went to our county commissioner they did not
care our judge could care less and the state
attorney general said sorry and so I sent it to
the Attorney General's Office in D.C. and I was
able to get them on the phone and they said they
received my information and would call me
back in a week probably on Tuesday. Well
I also turned Justice of the Peace Stewart (word illegible)
in to the judicial committee and have not
heard from them yet, to see how they are go(illegible)
to vote on this.
We have to know soon as we are getting
reservations and need to know if we can
use these spaces as they are.
We started our camp in 1964 so we
do know what it is all about and we
are proud of our camp. We have gravel,
"lots", of it, and it is the kind that wheel
chairs can get around in. 3/4" rock gravel
is not what we need. Oil is supposed to
settle the dust. Well if and when we have
dust we sprinkle it with water (illegible)
we water our grass, natural flowers, & (illegible)
this is clean and no (illegible) get
-----------------------------------------------------------------

upset with water but oil don't (illegible)

it to our tourist campers, the word passes
fast and the campers would just go by.
So will our business
We have a very short season and we
don't want to go into bankruptcy over
this.
Hope to hear from you soon. I can
get the D.C. Attorney General office on the
phone or by mail.

Thanks
Catherine Richter
of the
San-Suz-Ed