The Merritt Athletic Clubs invested in chair lifts for several of its pools that did not already have sloped entries. Photo courtesy of Merritt Athletic Clubs.

The March 15 deadline is looming to meet compliance standards for the Department of Justice’s (DoJ) revised regulations of the 2010 ADA Standards for Accessible Design and pool accessibility requirements. The supplemental regulations of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) of 1990 requires that all swimming pools, wading pools and spas of less than 300 linear feet have a lift or sloped entry into the pool. Pools larger than 300 linear feet need two means of access, which include a lift or a sloped entry. Other pool access can consist of transfer walls, transfer systems or stairs.

It should not be difficult or expensive for pool facility operators to achieve compliance for their existing pools, says John Caden, accessibility specialist with S.R. Smith, Canby, OR. Many facility operators will simply need to ensure that they have a chair lift.

“The key phrase is ‘readily achievable,’” Caden says, explaining that fitness facility operators with existing pools do not need to renovate their pools with a sloped entry. Instead, they can invest in a more affordable option, like a pool chair lift, which costs as little as $4,000.

However, facility operators planning a new aquatics area or a remodel of an existing pool or spa must ensure the design plans are in accordance with the 2010 ADA regulations, which means they must have a sloped entry.

“It is much easier to alter or modify a drawing for a pool or spa to meet the 2010 requirements during the planning phase than after the fact,” Caden says.

The DoJ recommends that any facility should perform a barrier removal analysis (site analysis) before remodeling or building a new pool or to see if an existing pool site is compliant with the ADA regulations. The audit will determine if the pool meets the pool accessibility requirements and what issues may need to be addressed.

Generally, a facility’s aquatics director or vendor keeps the club apprised of ADA regulations and requirements for compliance. Operators also have to renew pool licenses every year. Those licenses, along with city and state inspections, keep a facility on its toes.

“We would not even be allowed to open our pool if we were not compliant. It just wouldn’t happen,” says Rea Kulick, manager/aquatics director at Midtown Athletic Club-Palatine, outside of Chicago.

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