Laura
09-19-2007, 07:58 AM
http://www.nydailynews.com/boroughs/bronx/2007/09/18/2007-09-18_new_yankees_stadium_to_have_better_acces.html
New Yankees stadium to have better access for disabled
BY HEATHER APPEL
Tuesday, September 18th 2007, 4:00 AM
Theresa Feighery looks forward to improvements at new stadium.
If someone with Lou Gehrig's disease attends a Yankees game in the Bronx today, he might be sitting alone.
But when the new ballpark opens in 2009, it'll be a whole new ballgame for people with disabilities.
Advocates have been meeting with Yankees brass since 2005 to hash out plans for better seating for people in wheelchairs and to make the park friendly to the vision- or hearing-impaired.
Right now, people who use wheelchairs are restricted to certain sections with less than prime views of the field, and there's not always room for companions.
"You go to the game with people, you want to be with them. It's a social event," said Edith Prentiss, a wheelchair user who recalled bringing a group of kids to a game and being unable to sit anywhere near them.
After putting up with unreliable transportation, isolated seating and limited access to ballpark facilities for years, fans with disabilities are looking forward to a new stadium and transportation.
After the Department of Justice ruled the existing stadium doesn't meet federal standards under the Americans with Disabilities Act, the Yankees contracted with the United Spinal Association to ensure the new ballpark is as accessible as possible.
Last week, the group sponsored its seventh outreach meeting in two years to review the details, focusing on signage, technology and a ticket policy that will ensure people with physical disabilities get priority for accessible seats.
Fans arriving in the new stadium can expect completely accessible entrances and bathrooms, a choice of seats, ribbon boards and scoreboards with captioning that displays everything on the public address system, and assisted listening devices.
Advocated for the disabled are equally excited about the planned Metro-North station, an alternative to the 161st St. subway station, where broken elevators have stranded disabled fans.
"That station ranks No. 1 on our list of serial elevator offenders," said Michael Harris of the Disabled Riders Coalition.
One issue that dominates advocates' discussions is the ticket policy. When games are sold out, seats reserved for wheelchairs are sold to able-bodied buyers, and the ticket sellers can't legally ask for proof of disability. Task force members are looking into an "accessible seating club," something the Arizona Diamondbacks created so fans can buy blocks of seats and request wheelchair spots ahead of time.
To Kevin Feighery, whose 21-year-old daughter Theresa has attended games in a wheelchair since she was a kid, that sounds like a good solution.
"It's a good way for wheelchair seating to actually include the people who use wheelchairs," he said.
New Yankees stadium to have better access for disabled
BY HEATHER APPEL
Tuesday, September 18th 2007, 4:00 AM
Theresa Feighery looks forward to improvements at new stadium.
If someone with Lou Gehrig's disease attends a Yankees game in the Bronx today, he might be sitting alone.
But when the new ballpark opens in 2009, it'll be a whole new ballgame for people with disabilities.
Advocates have been meeting with Yankees brass since 2005 to hash out plans for better seating for people in wheelchairs and to make the park friendly to the vision- or hearing-impaired.
Right now, people who use wheelchairs are restricted to certain sections with less than prime views of the field, and there's not always room for companions.
"You go to the game with people, you want to be with them. It's a social event," said Edith Prentiss, a wheelchair user who recalled bringing a group of kids to a game and being unable to sit anywhere near them.
After putting up with unreliable transportation, isolated seating and limited access to ballpark facilities for years, fans with disabilities are looking forward to a new stadium and transportation.
After the Department of Justice ruled the existing stadium doesn't meet federal standards under the Americans with Disabilities Act, the Yankees contracted with the United Spinal Association to ensure the new ballpark is as accessible as possible.
Last week, the group sponsored its seventh outreach meeting in two years to review the details, focusing on signage, technology and a ticket policy that will ensure people with physical disabilities get priority for accessible seats.
Fans arriving in the new stadium can expect completely accessible entrances and bathrooms, a choice of seats, ribbon boards and scoreboards with captioning that displays everything on the public address system, and assisted listening devices.
Advocated for the disabled are equally excited about the planned Metro-North station, an alternative to the 161st St. subway station, where broken elevators have stranded disabled fans.
"That station ranks No. 1 on our list of serial elevator offenders," said Michael Harris of the Disabled Riders Coalition.
One issue that dominates advocates' discussions is the ticket policy. When games are sold out, seats reserved for wheelchairs are sold to able-bodied buyers, and the ticket sellers can't legally ask for proof of disability. Task force members are looking into an "accessible seating club," something the Arizona Diamondbacks created so fans can buy blocks of seats and request wheelchair spots ahead of time.
To Kevin Feighery, whose 21-year-old daughter Theresa has attended games in a wheelchair since she was a kid, that sounds like a good solution.
"It's a good way for wheelchair seating to actually include the people who use wheelchairs," he said.