Have you recently been sued for a non-compliant ADA issue, or are you simply being proactive about your ADA path of travel & designated parking?
If you answered yes to any of these questions, then this is for you! There are two ways to identify whether or not your parking lot and path of travel are ADA compliant-First Option: Request a CASp specialist to visit your property and identify the non-compliant areas. They will draft a report showing the areas of concern along with detailed photos and explanations. These reports are often overwhelming as they can be between 10-75 pages depending on your property’s needs and condition, yet offer no solutions for the problems at hand. Second Option: Have an Architect specializing in ADA compliance visit the site and draft a detailed set of plans for the proper corrections. These plans will be used by a contractor to determine the pricing of your project. The plans will show the existing ADA and the new, proposed ADA designs which is something a CASp report will not provide.

What should I do now?

If you are being proactive and are unsure if your property is ADA compliant then start with the CASp report. Once you have received the report and its determined that you need improvements, you can then share the CASp report with an Architect which they will likely appreciate and speed up their process. If you know that you need ADA corrections then go straight to the Architect, skipping the CASp process.
Let’s say you already have a CASp report for your property, can a contractor provide pricing from that?
The simple answer is yes but the honest answer is no. When dealing with ADA compliance it is extremely important to have a scope of work that is from an architect. This will ensure the liability falls back to the Architect after your upgrades have been completed per the plans. Having a contractor determine the scope of work from a CASp report might lead to an incorrect scope of work or small details missed as ADA requirements are often changing and different depending on where your property is located. CASp reports are very good at identifying the non-compliant areas but lack the detail on how to make the corrections.

So how do I find an ADA Architect?
At TARC, we recommend ADA Pros. They will visit your property and provide you with a detailed set of plans that are ready for a contractor like TARC to bid from. You can visit www.ada-pros.com or call 916-983-3816 to start the process for your ADA improvement project.