United States of America v. The International Spy Museum - Settlement Agreement

C. FINDINGS BY THE UNITED STATES

13.  The investigation and compliance review conducted by the Department found that the Museum initially failed to implement means to ensure that people with disabilities have an equal opportunity to participate in and benefit from services, programs and activities offered to others. The Department has identified various aspects of the Museum that are not in compliance with the ADA and, specifically, with the provisions identified in Paragraph 7 above.

14.  The Department alleges that, initially, the Museum failed to make all of its exhibits, public programs, and other offerings accessible and effectively communicated to individuals with disabilities in several ways, including but not limited to the following: the information on computer interactives screens was not accessible to people who are blind or have low vision; many audiovisual programs and most audio-only programs had audio tracks which were not accessible to people who are deaf or hard of hearing. Examples of the Museum's failure to remove architectural barriers in existing facilities included: no accessible seating in the Café; the force required to push or pull open the interior hinged doors to the men's and women's toilet rooms designated as accessible exceeded the maximum allowable force; and no integrated seating areas for wheelchairs and companion seats in the theaters. Since 2005 the Museum has undertaken remedial measures and, in some instances, has installed state-of-the art technologies in the Museum to comply with the ADA.

The Department has identified the following individual violations:

GENERAL

Circulation and flow:

a. There is no signage to the interior accessible route between the Museum lobby and the Spy City Café. See Standards § 4.1.2(7)(c).

b. The main Café entry door on F St., N.W. does not have directional signage to the exterior accessible Café entrance and the characters of the signage on the accessible Café entry door on 9th St., N.W. do not contrast with the background. See Standards §§ 4.1.2(7)(c), 4.30.5.

Elevators:

c. The "Disco" elevator hoist way entrance lacks raised and Braille floor designations on both jambs and the elevator emergency call system does not operate without voice communication. See Standards §§ 4.10.5, 4.10.14.

FIRST FLOOR

Museum Gift Shop:

d. The 42" height of the main cashier counter and the 42 1/2" height of the second cashier counter exceed the maximum 36" allowable height above the finished floor. No alternate accessible counter is provided. See Standards § 7.2(1).

Spy City Café:

e. The force required to push or pull open the interior hinged vestibule doors to the men's and women's toilet rooms designated as accessible is 10 pounds of force (lbf), which exceeds the maximum allowable door opening force of 5 lbf. See Standards § 4.13.11(2)(b).

f. The bottom edges of the reflecting surfaces of the mirrors in the men's and women's toilet rooms located outside the Café and designated as accessible are mounted 57 ½" [sic] from the finished floor, which exceeds the maximum allowable height of 40" above the finished floor. See Standards § 4.19.6.

g The height of the main cashier counter is 42" above the finished floor, exceeding the maximum allowable height of 36". See Standards § 7.2(1).

h. The Café has no accessible seating. Where fixed tables are provided at least 5% but not less than one of the fixed tables shall be accessible. See Standards § 5.1.

Main Lobby:

i. The 40 1/2" height of the main ticket counter exceeds the maximum allowable height of 36" above the finished floor. See Standards § 7.2(1).

j. Portions of the main ticket counter, which are mounted more than 27 inches above the finished floor, protrude more than 4 inches into the circulation path. See Standards § 4.4.1.

Restrooms Main Lobby:

k. The restroom vestibule door does not have the required minimum of 18" maneuvering clearance on the latch side of the door. See Standards § 4.13.6.

l. The force required to push or pull open the interior hinged doors to the restroom vestibule door is 10 lbf, which exceeds the maximum allowable door opening force of 5 lbf. See Standards § 4.13.11(2)(b).

m. The handles, locks, and other operating devices of the men's and women's toilet stall doors do not have a shape that is easy to grasp with one hand and require tight grasping and twisting actions of the wrist to operate. See Standards § 4.13.9.

n. The force required to push or pull open the interior hinged doors to the women's toilet room door is 13 lbf, which exceeds the maximum allowable door opening force of 5 lbf. See Standards § 4.13.11(2)(b).

o. The operation of the feminine product dispenser in the women's toilet room requires tight grasping and twisting of the wrist. See Standards § 4.27.4.

Suspicious Minds Ramp:

p. The ramp leading to the exhibits has a rise greater than 6", but does not have the required handrails on both sides. See Standards § 4.8.5.

q. The handrail of the ramp leading to the exhibits is not at the required distance of 1 1/2" from the wall. See Standards § 4.8.5(3).

21st Century Theater:

r. The theater lacks the required integrated wheelchair seating area for two wheelchairs and two companion seats. See Standards §§ 4.1.3(19)(a) and 4.33.3.

SECOND FLOOR

Toilet Rooms-Banquet Area:

s. The force required to push or pull open the doors to the women's and men's toilet rooms designated as accessible is 10 lbf, which exceeds the maximum allowable door opening force of 5 lbf. See Standards § 4.13.11(2)(b).

t. The toilet centerline of the men's toilet room is 19" from the side wall instead of the required 18". See Standards § 4.16.2.

Toilet Rooms-Special Exhibit Space:

u. The force required to push or pull open the restrooms' vestibule doors is 10 lbf, which exceeds the maximum allowable door opening force of 5 lbf. See Standards § 4.13.11(2)(b).

v. The force required to push or pull open the men's and women's toilet rooms designated as accessible is 10 lbf, which exceeds the maximum allowable door opening force of 5 lbf. See Standards § 4.13.11(2)(b).

w. The men's and women's toilet stall door hardware requires tight grasping and twisting of the wrist. See Standards § 4.13.9.

x. The operation of the feminine product dispenser in the women's toilet room requires tight grasping and twisting of the wrist. See Standards § 4.27.4.

y. The toilet seat cover dispenser in the women's toilet room is located behind the toilet and is not mounted within the allowable reach ranges. See Standards §§ 4.2.5 and 4.2.6.

THIRD FLOOR

Disinformation Corridor Exhibit:

z. The force required to push or pull open the red door leading out of the exhibit is 15 lbf, which exceeds the maximum allowable door opening force of 5 lbf. See Standards § 4.13.11(2)(b).

Rising Sun Exhibit:

aa. The force required to push or pull open the painted door leading out of the exhibit is 14 lbf, which exceeds the maximum allowable door opening force of 5 lbf. See Standards § 4.13.11(2)(b).

Briefing Room Theater:

bb. The theater lacks the required integrated wheelchair seating areas for two wheelchairs and two companion seats. See Standards §§ 4.1.13(19)(a) and 4.33.3.

Cloak and Dagger Theater:

cc. The theater lacks the required integrated wheelchair seating area for two wheelchairs and two companion seats. See Standards §§ 4.1.3(19)(a) and 4.33.3.

Toilet Rooms North (Celebrity Spies)–Men [sic]:

dd. The force required to push or pull open the men's toilet room door is 10 lbf, which exceeds the maximum allowable door opening force of 5 lbf. See Standards § 4.13.11(2)(b).

ee. The men's toilet room stall door hardware requires tight grasping and twisting of the wrist. See Standards § 4.13.9.

Toilet Rooms North (Celebrity Spies)–Women [sic]:

ff. The force required to push or pull open the women's toilet room door is 10 lbf, which exceeds the maximum allowable door opening force of 5 lbf. See Standards § 4.13.11(2)(b).

gg. The women's toilet room stall door hardware requires tight grasping and twisting of the wrist. See Standards § 4.13.9.

hh. The operation of the feminine product dispenser in the women's toilet room requires tight grasping and twisting of the wrist. See Standards § 4.27.4.

ii. The toilet seat is 20" above the finished floor and exceeds the allowable range of 17" to 19". See Standards § 4.16.3.

Toilet Rooms South (Briefing Theater):

jj. The force required to push or pull open the men's toilet room door is 10 lbf, which exceeds the maximum allowable door opening force of 5 lbf. See Standards § 4.13.11(2)(b).

kk. The men's and women's toilet room stall door hardware requires tight grasping and twisting of the wrist. See Standards § 4.13.9.

ll. The force required to push or pull open the women's toilet room door is 10 lbf, which exceeds the maximum allowable door opening force of 5 lbf. See Standards § 4.13.11(2)(b).

Auxiliary Aids and Services

mm. The Museum has not provided adequate audio description, captioning, or other means of effectively communicating the experience and content of its artifacts and other offerings:

i. None of the printed materials available to visitors in the Museum itself are in alternate formats (e.g., Braille, large print, audio recording, or in accessible electronic format on disk, CD-Rom, DVD or on the web). See 28 C.F.R §§ 36.303(a), (b), and (c).

ii. The Museum's map, which is available to aid navigation and understanding of the Museum's offerings, is not available in formats accessible to visitors who are blind or who have low vision. See 28 C.F.R §§ 36.303(a), (b), and (c).

iii. No method of communicating exhibit content to visitors who are blind or have low vision, such as audio description of exhibit objects, period settings, audiovisual presentations or computer interactives, is available. See 28 C.F.R §§ 36.303(a), (b), and (c).

iv. The information on computer interactive screens is not accessible to people who are blind or have low vision because no method of communicating the content of the computer interactives such as audio description or a screen reader is provided. See 28 C.F.R §§ 36.303(a), (b), and (c).

v. Exhibition label text is not available in alternate formats. See 28 C.F.R §§ 36.303(a), (b), and (c).

vi. Most of the information is not tactile or provided in an alternate way for individuals with disabilities and the tactile experiences currently available for some exhibits are limited in number and do not adequately convey the main themes and visitor experiences in the Museum. See 28 C.F.R §§ 36.303(a), (b), and (c).

vii. Not all audiovisual programs have audio tracks that have accessible alternatives for people who are deaf or hard of hearing. See 28 C.F.R §§ 36.303(a), (b), and (c).

viii. Not all audio-only programs are accessible to people who are deaf or hard of hearing. See 28 C.F.R §§ 36.303(a), (b), and (c).

ix. The Museum does not always answer its published TTY number. See 28 C.F.R §§ 36.303(a), (b), and (c).

x. The Museum has a policy of providing sign language interpreters only for special event public programs. There is no policy for provision of other auxiliary services such as oral interpreters, realtime captioners, or assistive listening systems. See 28 C.F.R §§ 36.303(a), (b), and (c).