ADA Lawsuit Says Bob Evans Lacks Proper Wheelchair Access

An Americans with Disabilities Act class action lawsuit was filed against Bob Evans Farms Inc. for allegedly having parking spaces for handicapped use that are too steep and difficult for wheelchairs to maneuver around, at several of its restaurants in the Pittsburgh area.

The ADA lawsuit was filed by Pennsylvania resident Christopher Mielo, who needs to use a wheelchair because he is unable to walk and is a Bob Evans patron and would like to be able to continue to dine at Bob Evans restaurants.

Mielo claims that he visited the Bob Evans location in Pittsburg on McKnight Road and he “experienced unnecessary difficulty and risk due to excessively sloped surfaces within a purportedly accessible parking space.”

Investigators, working on Mielo’s behalf, visited seven of the Pittsburgh area Bob Evans locations and found one to four violations of the ADA at each location.

The alleged ADA violations include having parking spaces and/or access aisles with surfaces “running and/or cross slopes exceeding 1:48 (i.e., 2.1%),” lacking spaces marked “van accessible,” lacking access aisles, and  having part of the “route to the store entrance [with] a running slope exceeding 1:20 (i.e., 2.1%).

Meilo claims that these alleged violations make it very difficult for him access Bob Evans restaurants and retail locations.

“As an individual with a mobility disability who is dependent upon a wheelchair, plaintiff has a keen interest in whether public accommodations have architectural barriers that impede full accessibility to those accommodations by individuals with mobility impairments,” the ADA class action lawsuit explains.

The Pennsylvania man would like to be able to shop and eat at Bob Evans store and restaurants, but the “architectural barriers” are a major deterrent for him.

The Americans with Disabilities Act was signed into law in June 1990 by former President George H.W. Bush.

“Title III of the ADA prohibits discrimination in the activities of places of public accommodation and requires places of public accommodation to comply with ADA standards and be readily accessible to, and independently usable by, individuals with disabilities,” Mielo explains in his Bob Evans class action lawsuit.

Under the federal law, Bob Evans “is required to remove existing architectural barriers when such removal is readily achievable for places of public accommodation that existed prior to Jan. 26, 1992.”

If there have been changes to Bob Evans’ Restaurants since Jan. 26, 1992, then the company is obligated to make sure “that the altered portions of the facility are readily accessible to and useable by individuals with disabilities, including individuals who use wheelchairs.”

This ADA class action lawsuit is for “all wheelchair users who have attempted, or will attempt, to access defendant’s facilities.”

Mielo alleges that the lack of ADA compliance by Bob Evans retail locations is a form of discrimination against himself and other wheelchair-bound patrons.

He is asking for declaratory and injunctive relief in addition to having all his court costs and attorney fees covered by Bob Evans.

Mielo is represented by R. Bruce Carlson, Benjamin J. Sweet and Stephanie Goldin of Carlson Lynch Ltd.

There is no attorney information for Bob Evans at this time.

The ADA Class Action Lawsuit is Christopher Mielo v. Bob Evans Farms Inc., Case No. 2:14-cv-01036, in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania.