BALTIMORE — Baltimore City has agreed to spend $44 million on sidewalk and street-ramp improvements, after a lawsuit from wheelchair users.
Three wheelchair users, along with an independent-living center for people with disabilities, sued the city for failing to properly install and maintain the sidewalks and ramps.
As part of the settlement, the city will also appoint an ADA coordinator, monitor pedestrian accessibility on a 10-year basis, clear clutter and vegetation annually, and communicate with the public about the importance of accessibility on city rights-of-way, according to a press release today.
Mayor Brandon Scott's office is calling it an "unprecedented investment in pedestrian infrastructure."
The city Board of Estimates must still vote on the settlement terms, on Nov. 20.
Scott said in a statement:
As is the case in many historic East Coast cities, the challenge posed by our City’s sidewalks and curbs long predates the Americans with Disabilities Act and adequately changing our infrastructure poses a monumental task. However, under my Administration, we are committed to taking every action necessary to set the City on track to come into compliance with the ADA, and ensure Baltimore is more accessible to our disabled community than ever before. As with every deeply-entrenched problem, achieving this goal will not happen overnight, and it will ultimately cost far more than $44 million included in this settlement. But today, we join with all of our neighbors to announce the largest move in this City’s history to make our sidewalks accessible to everyone.
