There are steps leading up to the front doors of the building, but not a ramp.
There are two flights of stairs to travel from the first floor to the second, and there is not an elevator for those unable to navigate steps to the second floor. That is a frustrating fact for a man who has been involved with Martins Ferry politics for more than four decades, and although the issue has been examined “at least 50 times,” no improvements have been made to bring the municipality’s City compliant with the American Disabilities Act.
“I am glad we’ve been talking about the city building lately because it’s very frustrating to me that we have all of those meetings, but the location of the meetings is not accessible to everyone in Martins Ferry,” said Councilman Jack Regis. “The building is literally falling down around us because it’s not in very good shape at all. That’s why I think we should be looking to do something with it in the near future.
“The number one question on the table is how we can fund the work that needs performed,” he said. “It’s my opinion that something needs to happen very soon because a month does not go by someone who wants to attend our meeting but can’t because they have no way to get to them. That’s not fair to those people at all, and that’s irresponsible of us, I feel.”
Martins Ferry Mayor John Davies recently told local media outlets the Fifth Street structure will be assessed again and renovations will follow. Davies also was quoted saying City Hall will be made “as ADA compliant as possible.”
While Regis appreciated the mayor’s update, he knows some needs will not be addressed.
“That’s because putting an elevator in the city building would be pretty impossible because it’s been considered and looked at more than a few times over the years. We even have some people who work for the city who have a tough time getting around,” Regis explained. “Some have health problems, and because of the building is today, they have a difficult time getting to their office, and that just shouldn’t be the case.
“I have had hope for a long time that we could get the funding to build a nice one-story building so all of those issues could go away, but that’s not taken place yet,” he said. “I would like to see everyone get on the same page someday so we can make it right for everyone and not just the people who are healthy and capable climbing a couple sets of stairs.”
Absence of Representation
The lack of ADA compliance is not just limiting to those residents who wish to attend Martins Ferry Council meetings, but it makes it impossible for a disabled taxpayer who wishes to serve the city as a ward representative.
In fact, according to Regis, a past council member was forced to vacate his seat because of heath issues connected to mobility.
“We had a council member some years ago and he was experiencing some health issues and couldn’t handle the steps,” Regis recalled. “That caused him to resign from council, and that was not fair at all. Not to him and not to the people he represented. It made my heart sick to see that happen.
“It’s just not right,” the councilman said. “We were talking recently about how we don’t get many residents to our council meetings, and the accessibility has to be one of the reasons why, and I’m willing to bet the times of our meetings is another. We schedule the meetings for 6 p.m., but that means most people are already home and they don’t want to go back out.”
Now that it is operating once again, Regis believes East Ohio Regional Hospital may offer a solution to the access issues at City Hall.
“We have held meetings off-site, but it took a lot of work to do them the right way,” Regis said. “We tried them at the community center and at several of the firehouses, but people go frustrated because we didn’t have answers to their questions because they materials and documents were not there at those sites.
“Now, holding the meetings at East Ohio Regional is an idea we’ve not talked about for a while, but now that the hospital is open again it might supply the answer to our problems as far as council meetings are concerned,” he added. “As far as the connections we would need to make at the hospital, it should be easy enough, but we still have to address the City Building and it’s lack of compliance to the American Disabilities Act.”
