DANIEL DAVIDSON, D/B/A THE TEMPLE HOUSE

Issue: Vertical accessibility into the water of an above grade pool at a bed and breakfast facility.

Analysis: The applicant is requesting a waiver from providing accessibility into the water of an above-grade pool at a bed and breakfast. The Art Deco building was construction in the mid-1930’s and was originally used as a Temple. It was subsequently converted to a residence and now operates as a bed and breakfast undergoing an approximate $10,000 alteration. The exterior pool deck is intended to be used by the B & B guests and for persons invited to private events such as weddings or corporate receptions. The deck is fully accessible; however, the edge of the pool itself is six feet above grade and 9 feet 4 inches laterally into the water. According to the applicant, due diligence has occurred and no manufacturer could be located that can provide equipment to facilitate transferring a wheelchair user from the pool deck to the water. The applicant also considered demolishing a portion of the pool, but preliminary cost estimates indicate it would cost 600 times the projected cost for the overall project. The applicant stated that it would be both structurally impractical as well as technically infeasible to provide a method for persons with disabilities to achieve entry into the water. NOTE: The Commission may choose to waiver the requirements of 553.509, F. S., however, such action would not relieve the applicant of its obligation to provide pool access as required by the federal ADA.

Project Progress:

The project is under construction.

Items to be Waived:

553.509: Vertical accessibility - Nothing in sections 553.501-553.513 or the guidelines shall be construed to relieve the owner of any building, structure or facility governed by those sections from the duty to provide vertical accessibility to all levels above and below the occupiable grade level, regardless of whether the guidelines require an elevator to be installed in such building, structure or facility, except for:

(1) Elevator pits, elevator penthouses, mechanical rooms, piping or equipment catwalks and automobile lubrication and maintenance pits and platforms;

(2) Unoccupiable spaces, such as rooms, enclosed spaces and storage spaces that are not designed for human occupancy, for public accommodations or for work areas; and

(3) Occupiable spaces and rooms that are not open to the public and that house no more than five persons, including, but not limited to equipment control rooms and projection booths.

Waiver Criteria: There is no specific guidance for a waiver of this requirement in the code. The Commission’s current rule, authorized in Section 553.512, Florida Statutes, provides criteria for granting waivers and allows consideration of unnecessary or extreme hardship to the applicant if the specific requirements were imposed.