The Ohio Renaissance Festival Protest

If you attend the Ohio Renaissance Festival in Harveysburg, Ohio (just north of Cincinnati, OH), please pay special attention to the stairs and other obstacles that folk in wheel chairs must combat while visiting the festival. I think you will find that many of the buildings do not offer any form of wheel chair ramps. Other buildings have very steep ramps or ramps which are very slick when it rains. I do not believe this is compliant with ADA standards.

Because many of the buildings are independently owned, it does seem like the shop owners would be responsible for installing these ramps. However, I have been told by a couple merchants that while they have wanted to install ramps, the Ohio Renaissance Festival has told them they may not install those ramps because the Ohio Renaissance Festival layout is such that a ramp would obstruct he gravel path in front of the building. In other instances, the same factors seem to create a situation where ramps are far too steep of an incline.

I believe if Peter Carroll and the Ohio Renaissance Festival wanted to bother attempting with ADA standards, they would simply redirect the gravel street a wee bit away from shops so that the shop was able to comply with the ADA rules for equal access. How much could a little gravel cost? Instead, merchants seem to be finding themselves in a situation where they can not comply with ADA standards.

As you might imagine, I think Peter Carroll should come up off that profit that he lines his pockets with, stop acting like a slum lord, and fix his streets so that merchants can comply with ADA standards. I also think he should pay the fines and law suits that booth owners may be forced to pay. Fortunately, it is possible that Peter Carroll could be forced to pay those fines.

If merchants compare notes about their attempts to comply with ADA standards, there might be enough evidence to bring about a class action suit which would force Peter Carroll and / or the Ohio Renaissance Festival to assume responsibility for preventing building owners from compliance with ADA standards.