Pizza Today - August 2018 - 34

In short, the ADA went into effect
in January 1992 with a general set of
regulations that helps business owners
ensure their properties are ADA
compliant, including:
 New versus old/historic buildings
Counter height
 Number of wheelchair seating
locations at tables dependent on
restaurant size
 Accessible parking spaces
 Door weight and threshold size
 Reach ranges
 Accessibility in bathrooms
 Wheelchair passage width
 Accessibility to upper floors
 Lobby maneuverability
 Flooring surfaces
 Ramp sizes
 Service dog regulations (see more on
that topic below). 
For more information, the Department
of Justice (DOJ) has established a tollfree ADA Information line at (800)
514-0301, and there are tax credits
and deductions available for qualifying
businesses.

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AT BREWSTER'S ITALIAN CAFÉ in New

Buffalo, Michigan, head pizzaiolo
Ryan Evans says the 26-year-old fullservice restaurant follows ADA code
and has seen lots of revisions over the
years. "About 15 years ago, when this
restaurant was built out into the fullservice restaurant, it had a cobblestone
floor and huge heavy doors and it went
from being an unaccessible restaurant
to a fully accessible restaurant over the
last 10 years. We smoothed out all of our
floors and we made these nice assisted
open doors," Evans says. "We just did
another renovation ... not necessarily
for handicapped accessibility but it was a
huge part of the numbers that went into
play with table heights, flooring that was
going in and things of that nature."
Evans says functionality often takes
precedence over accessibility, with
operators trying to fit as much as they
can into their restaurants for profit. The

3 4 / P I Z Z AT O D AY. C O M / A U G U S T 2 0 1 8

result? Reduced accessibility comes when
operators have extra space and decide
to cram as many tables as possible for
additional turnover.
ASIDE FROM BUILDING CODES AND
REGULATIONS, the ADA also covers

service dogs, whose jobs are to protect
and help people with disabilities lead
more independent lifestyles. The wording
here is key. Since March 2011, only
trained canines are recognized as service
animals, adding that "service animals
are defined as dogs that are individually
trained to do work or perform tasks for
people with disabilities."
Under the ADA, businesses --
including restaurants -- must allow
service dogs into their establishments "in
all areas of the facility where the public is
normally allowed to go."
That included a USA service veteran
whose Great Dane came under fire in
Delaware from an irate customer who
refused to dine with the canine present at
the next table. Service dogs are essentially
considered medical devices much like an
oxygen tank or walker, unlike emotional
support animals, who don't fall under
ADA protection.
According to the ADA, strict
guidelines for service dogs in public
include:
 The service animal must be a dog of
any breed.
 The dog must be trained to do a
specific task -- such as alert its handler
of oncoming seizures.
 Therapy and comfort animals (of
which recent news reports have
covered peacocks, pigs and hamsters)
do not fall under the same protections
as service dogs.
 The dog must already be trained before
going in public.
 You cannot ask to see documentation
declaring a dog in service. Do your
reasonable best to accommodate both
the guest, their party and the dog.
 Service dogs are allowed to go
anywhere the customer is.

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You do have rights as a business
owner if a service dog is exhibiting
dangerous signs or being misused in your
establishment. For a complete Q&A
regarding service dogs in your restaurant,
visit https://www.ada.gov/regs2010/
service_animal_qa.html.
TAKE A LOOK AROUND your own
restaurant. There's a good chance you
probably violate at least one or two
ADA regulations, and identifying
and complying now could save future
headaches. "The ultimate goal here is
the ADA law has come a long way since
it was enacted in the early '90s, and
the whole idea is to uphold the ADA,
make sure people are in compliance and
everybody is doing the right things," the
NRA's Meade says. "From the restaurant
industry perspective, we're in the
hospitality business. We want to be open
and accessible to everyone. ... That's the
business we're in, and we recognize that
education is a big piece of all this and the
No. 1 goal is compliance." n
MANDY DETWILER

Pizza Today.

is managing editor at

LENNY RAGO, owner of Panino's Pizzeria
in Chicago, has a person with autism
on his staff and says hiring people with
disabilities has given his entire operation
new light. The staff member started as a
dishwasher as part of a program with a
special-needs school. He "just turned out
to be a wonderful person," Rago says. "If
you have an open mind to put up with
his disability - he asks a lot of questions
- he's very prompt (and) on time. He
never misses a day. He looks forward to
coming to work.
"Keep an open mind, sit down and give
it a shot," Rago says of hiring people with
disabilities. "See where he (or she) could
work out and give the person a chance.
.... It's a tough call, but I think everybody
deserves the opportunity to prove
themselves."


https://www.ada.gov/regs2010/service_animal_qa.html http://www.PIZZATODAY.COM

Pizza Today - August 2018

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Pizza Today - August 2018

Pizza Today - August 2018
Commentary
Contents
Contributors
Expo Spotlight
Interact
Conversation
Man on the Street
Tony’s Trending Recipe
At Your Service
Destinations
Knead to Know
Road to Ppne ‘18
2018 Independent Pizzeria of the Year: Empire Slice House, Oklahoma City, Ok
Product Showcase
Pizza Today Yellow Pages
The Marketplace
Reader’s Resource
Mike’s Monthly Tip
Pizza Today - August 2018 - CT1
Pizza Today - August 2018 - CT2
Pizza Today - August 2018 - Pizza Today - August 2018
Pizza Today - August 2018 - Cover2
Pizza Today - August 2018 - Commentary
Pizza Today - August 2018 - 4
Pizza Today - August 2018 - 5
Pizza Today - August 2018 - 6
Pizza Today - August 2018 - 7
Pizza Today - August 2018 - Contents
Pizza Today - August 2018 - 9
Pizza Today - August 2018 - Contributors
Pizza Today - August 2018 - 11
Pizza Today - August 2018 - Expo Spotlight
Pizza Today - August 2018 - 13
Pizza Today - August 2018 - Interact
Pizza Today - August 2018 - 15
Pizza Today - August 2018 - Conversation
Pizza Today - August 2018 - 17
Pizza Today - August 2018 - Man on the Street
Pizza Today - August 2018 - 19
Pizza Today - August 2018 - Tony’s Trending Recipe
Pizza Today - August 2018 - 21
Pizza Today - August 2018 - At Your Service
Pizza Today - August 2018 - 23
Pizza Today - August 2018 - Destinations
Pizza Today - August 2018 - 25
Pizza Today - August 2018 - Knead to Know
Pizza Today - August 2018 - 27
Pizza Today - August 2018 - 28
Pizza Today - August 2018 - 29
Pizza Today - August 2018 - 30
Pizza Today - August 2018 - 31
Pizza Today - August 2018 - 32
Pizza Today - August 2018 - 33
Pizza Today - August 2018 - 34
Pizza Today - August 2018 - 35
Pizza Today - August 2018 - 36
Pizza Today - August 2018 - 37
Pizza Today - August 2018 - 38
Pizza Today - August 2018 - 39
Pizza Today - August 2018 - 40
Pizza Today - August 2018 - 41
Pizza Today - August 2018 - Road to Ppne ‘18
Pizza Today - August 2018 - 43
Pizza Today - August 2018 - 2018 Independent Pizzeria of the Year: Empire Slice House, Oklahoma City, Ok
Pizza Today - August 2018 - 45
Pizza Today - August 2018 - 46
Pizza Today - August 2018 - 47
Pizza Today - August 2018 - 48
Pizza Today - August 2018 - 49
Pizza Today - August 2018 - 50
Pizza Today - August 2018 - 51
Pizza Today - August 2018 - Product Showcase
Pizza Today - August 2018 - 53
Pizza Today - August 2018 - 54
Pizza Today - August 2018 - Pizza Today Yellow Pages
Pizza Today - August 2018 - 56
Pizza Today - August 2018 - 57
Pizza Today - August 2018 - 58
Pizza Today - August 2018 - 59
Pizza Today - August 2018 - 60
Pizza Today - August 2018 - 61
Pizza Today - August 2018 - 62
Pizza Today - August 2018 - The Marketplace
Pizza Today - August 2018 - 64
Pizza Today - August 2018 - 65
Pizza Today - August 2018 - 66
Pizza Today - August 2018 - 67
Pizza Today - August 2018 - 68
Pizza Today - August 2018 - 69
Pizza Today - August 2018 - 70
Pizza Today - August 2018 - 71
Pizza Today - August 2018 - 72
Pizza Today - August 2018 - Reader’s Resource
Pizza Today - August 2018 - Mike’s Monthly Tip
Pizza Today - August 2018 - Cover3
Pizza Today - August 2018 - Cover4
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