Kirola v. City & County of San Francisco, The

Background

Plaintiffs filed this class action in 2007, alleging discrimination under Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act, Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act, and several California laws. In 2010, the court certified a class of people with mobility disabilities seeking declaratory and injunctive relief for disability-access barriers at City parks, libraries, swimming pools, curb ramps, sidewalks, crosswalks, and other outdoor pedestrian walkways.

After a 14-day bench trial, the court entered judgment for the City on all claims in 2014. The Ninth Circuit later affirmed in part, reversed in part, and remanded. In 2021, this court granted the defendants’ motion for judgment as a matter of law. On a later appeal, the Ninth Circuit again reversed in part, affirmed in part, and remanded with instructions for this court to issue injunctive relief concerning the Americans with Disabilities Act Accessibility Guidelines violations identified in the 2021 order.

Violations Addressed

The court’s order identified the following violations:

Main Library

- Lavatories in a third-floor restroom lacked insulation on supply and drain lines. - Three restrooms lacked semi-ambulatory stalls. - A lavatory in the Latino/Hispanic meeting room lacked the required minimum knee clearance. - Restroom and non-restroom doors throughout the library required more than five pounds of opening force. - A toilet-stall door in the ground-floor women’s restroom opened in front of the toilet instead of in front of clear space. - The Koret Auditorium lacked companion seating next to wheelchair seating spaces. - The Deaf Services Center video-booth doorway had insufficient clear opening width. - The video booth had a landing that was 31 inches deep instead of the required minimum 48 inches.

St. Mary’s Playground

The playground lacked a compliant accessible route. The elevated bridgeway used to reach the park had excessive slopes and sections that were too narrow. The alternative service road had slopes of 13 to 15 percent, making the new playground highly inaccessible.

Golden Gate Park

One accessible restroom in the ballpark area lacked a required grab bar.

Ruling

The court granted injunctive relief. It ordered the City to correct the identified violations at the Main Library, St. Mary’s Playground, and the Golden Gate Park restroom within 180 days of the order.

The City had to provide the court and plaintiffs’ counsel with a correction schedule within 30 days. At least 60 days before beginning any required corrective work that had not already been completed, the City had to notify plaintiffs in writing of the planned work. Plaintiffs could comment within 15 days, after which the City could proceed with work it considered appropriate to meet the 2010 Americans with Disabilities Act Accessibility Standards.

Within 30 days after corrective work was completed, the City had to notify plaintiffs and, if requested, provide an opportunity for plaintiffs to observe the completed work jointly with the City. If disputes remained, the parties were to meet and confer before bringing the issue to court. The City also had to file sworn certifications of completed work. All remedial work had to comply with the 2010 federal accessibility standards and the current California Building Code, whichever provided more protective accessibility requirements.

The court retained jurisdiction to enforce the order and resolve disputes arising from it.