OCT 11 1995
The Honorable Strom Thurmond
United States Senate
217 Russell Office Building
Washington, D.C. 20510-4001

Dear Senator Thurmond:

     Your letter to the Department of Labor on behalf of your
constituent, Edwin Poulnot, III (your case number 5206230003),
was referred to the Department of Justice for reply. Mr. Poulnot
has questions about existing retail space that he is trying to
sublease to another tenant. Mr. Poulnot wished to know his
obligations under the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990
(ADA). Please excuse our delay in responding.

     The ADA does not establish specific requirements regarding
alterations that must be made to existing facilities for the
purpose of accessibility, if alterations are not otherwise
planned. Title III of the ADA, which applies to places of public
accommodation and commercial facilities, simply requires that
places of public accommodation, including sales and rental
establishments, remove architectural and communication barriers
to the extent that it is readily achievable to do so. Such
barriers must be removed from all public areas of the place of
public accommodation, including restrooms. Congress defined the
term "readily achievable" to mean "easily accomplishable and able
to be carried out without much difficulty or expense."

     In determining whether an action is readily achievable, the
factors to be considered include: 1) the nature and cost of the
action needed; 2) the overall financial resources of the entity;
3) the number of persons employed by the entity; 4) the effect
which complying will have on the entity's expenses and resources;
5) legitimate safety requirements necessary for safe operation;
6) the impact otherwise of the action upon operation of the site;
7) the relationship of the entity to any parent corporation or
entity; and 8) the overall financial resources, size, and types
of operations of any parent corporation or entity.

cc: Records; Chrono; Wodatch; McDowney; Milton; FOIA
n:\udd\congress\achvable.thu\sc. young-parran
01-03700
                                   - 2 -
     The Department of Justice regulation implementing title III
of the ADA requires that measures taken to remove barriers must
comply with the ADA Standards for Accessible Design unless such
compliance is not readily achievable. If it is not readily
achievable to remove barriers in an existing facility that is not
otherwise being altered, then barrier removal is not required.
However, where barrier removal is not readily achievable, the
public accommodation must nonetheless make its goods, services,
or facilities available through alternative methods, such as
curbside service, home delivery, or relocation of activities,
where those methods are readily achievable.

     Thus, businesses such as retail stores may need to adjust
their layout of racks and shelves in order to permit wheelchair
access, but they are not required to do so if it would result in
a significant loss of selling space. However, the store is still
required to make the goods and services that are located along
inaccessible aisles available to individuals with disabilities
through alternative methods. For example, the store could
instruct a clerk to retrieve inaccessible merchandise, if it is
readily achievable to do so.

     Finally, please note that both the landlord and the tenant
of a retail establishment are public accommodations and have full
responsibility for complying with all ADA title III requirements
applicable to that place of public accommodation. The title III
regulation permits the landlord and the tenant to allocate
responsibility, in the lease, for complying with particular
provisions of the regulation. However, any allocation made in a
lease or other contract is only effective as between the parties,
and both landlord and tenant remain fully liable for compliance
with all provisions of the ADA relating to that place of public
accommodation.

     I hope this information will be helpful to you in responding
to your constituent.
                              Sincerely,


                          Deval L. Patrick
                     Assistant Attorney General
                       Civil Rights Division
01-03701
                              KERRISONS
*DOWNTOWN--260 KING ST.   CHARLESTON, S.C. 29401
*ST. ANDREWS CENTER
*NORTHWOODS MALL                                            FOUNDED IN

Mr. John Payne
Office Sen. J. Strom Thurmond
Washington, D.C.

FAX 202-224-1300

Dear Mr. Payne I am writing you to ask your help in
clarifying the implications of the Disability Act on a
property that I am trying to sublease to another tenant.

This building is 26,500 square feet and is located in the
City of Charleston. It was constructed in 1966, and is
free standing within a strip center. It has wheel chair
ramps at the front and rear doors. We are presently
offering public rest rooms for male and female. These
restrooms are small and do not have access for wheel
chairs. The rooms are quite small and have two stalls in
the mens room and four stalls in the womens area. Store
aisles in the main aisles are about five feet, but in the
interior aisles the width varies according to the
department.

My question is, what do we have to do (if anything) to
conform to the Disabilities Act.

Any information which you can obtain for us would be
sincerely appreciated.

July 25, 1995                      Sincerely,

                                   Edwin Poulnot, III
                                   President
                                   Fax. 803-722-4045
01-03702