Pool Lift Information

Our Pool Lift Experts

These are the leading experts in the pool industry. SR Smith, and Spectrum Products are key manufacturers of pool lifts. For more information on pool lifts, or to pose questions, join the ADA Pool Lift Group on LinkedIn. Call our office at 651-766-6666 if you need help joining LinkedIn.

Patrick Smith, Director of Sales, East U.S., for SR Smith, LLC.

John Caden, Accessibility Specialist at SR Smith, LLC

Mark Hines, Director Level Business Development and Sales Leader, Spectrum Products

Pool Lift Questions, Clarification and Concerns

Question

We have a resort, that is a condo association, that rents cabins. However we have no handicap accessible rentals as all our cabins were built in the 1940s. Do we still need to install a pool lift?

Answer (Patrick Smith)

Without seeing the facility, I would assume that a lift would be needed for the pool. By renting out the cabins to the general public, your facility becomes a public accommodation. Even though the cabins were built in the 40’s, my assumption would be that adding a lift would be readily achievable.

Question

If a location has more than one pool, will they need to leave the lift in place during business hours, or can they move it into place upon a request to use the lift? For example: A hotel with a pool and a spa. Will they need to leave the two lifts in place during business hours?

Answer (Patrick Smith)

The law only requires the facility to have a lift available. The lift does not need to be on the deck at all times during business hours. In fact, some may argue that having a lift on the deck all the time may provide something for kids to play on. My personal recommendation is to provide a lift that can easily be stored when not in use and can then easily be brought out to deck side when needed.

Question

Is it true that all bodies of water need a separate lift? For example a hotel has a sap and a pool, both need a separate lift?

Answer (Patrick Smith)

Actually, each body of water is required to have its own means of access. A spa can have a transfer wall or transfer system as its primary means, so you don’t necessarily need two lifts.

However, under the law, one lift that can be relocated does not satisfy the requirements.

Having said that, I think this will be something that gets litigated over time. If a facility writes an implementation plan and specifies that they feel one movable lift for both bodies of water will meet the requirements, they will most likely not get penalized. At worst, the DOJ would probably just make them provide a primary means for each.

Question

I have had a lot of people saying they&8217;re going to be Grand fathered in…? Looking for a deeper understanding I guess.

Answer (John Caden)

The term that the government uses in reference to “grandfathering” is Safe Harbor. Here is the text of a white paper I wrote on the subject that should help to answer your questions. Keep in mind that complying with accessibility regulations for existing facilities is required only when it readily achievable. For more information on that subject, please visit www.poollifts.com and look under the section on white papers:

Safe Harbor

The recently published revision to the American’s with Disabilities Act contains a provision that is known as “Safe Harbor.” There has been some confusion as how this safe harbor provision relates to swimming pools. The purpose of this document is to try to clear up any such confusion.

Following the passage of the American’s with Disabilities Act in 1990, the Department of Justice issued its initial set of accessibility guidelines in 1991. These 1991 guidelines covered items that had an immediate impact in removing barriers for people with disabilities. Although elements covered in the 1991 guidelines provided regulations for many parts of society, there were a number of areas that either were not included or were incomplete.

The 2010 revision to the ADA law provided some expansion to the 1991 guidelines and also introduced guidelines to many areas that were not covered in the 1991 version.

In order to ease the financial burden on existing facilities who completed modifications to meet the 1991 guidelines, these new regulations provide a safe harbor with respect to the 2010 requirements. If there is a requirement in the 2010 regulations that is either an enhancement or a change from the modifications made to comply with the 1991 guidelines, an existing facility would not be required to make that change until such time that he made alterations to the facility.

In the case of swimming pools, however, there were no technical or scoping requirements contained in the 1991 guidelines. According to the 2010 regulations, “…the safe harbor provided in § 36.304(d)(2)(i) does not apply to those elements in existing facilities that are subject to supplemental requirements (i.e., elements for which there are neither technical nor scoping specifications in the 1991 Standards), and therefore those elements must be modified to the extent readily achievable to comply with the 2010 Standards.”

The 2010 regulation further clarifies this issue with respect to swimming pools, by providing a list of elements that are specifically not eligible for the safe harbor provision. This list includes swimming pools, wading pools, and spas.

The bottom line is that swimming pools are not eligible for safe harbor and all regulated swimming facilities will need to provide accessibility as outlined in the 2010 regulations.

For more information on this issue or any other areas of swimming pool accessibility, please contact the ADA at www.ada.gov, or visit www.poollifts.com.

Any public accommodation should conduct a barrier removal analysis to determine what, if any, elements within their facility would need to comply with ADA regulations. Once that is complete, the facility should develop an implementation plan that lays out the steps they will take to bring their facility into compliance. If they determine that removing the identified barriers is not readily achievable, this should be explained in their implementation plan. This plan should be written and kept on file within the facility. In the event that any complaints are filed against the facility, this documentation will indicate that the facility has been proactive in recognizing their obligation, despite the fact that implementing barrier removal is not readily achievable. Keep in mind that barrier removal is an ongoing responsibility. What is not readily achievable today may change in the future. The facility should review their implementation plan periodically to make such a determination.

QUESTION

Is there a minimum fine of $50,000 dollars if you don't comply or are you just leaving yourself open to lawsuits and some sort of action of the department of justice???

ANSWER

Patrick Smith • Here is a quote from the ADA website:

The Department may file lawsuits in Federal court to enforce the ADA and may obtain court orders including compensatory damages and back pay to remedy discrimination. Under title III the Department may also obtain civil penalties of up to $55,000 for the first violation and $110,000 for any subsequent violation.

Now, the understanding I have is the fines are not likely to be assessed immediately. I think if someone were thumbing their nose at the DOJ, the fine might be a bit more likely, however, if a facility isn't compliant, the most likely thing to happen is the DOJ require the facility to become compliant. If they don't after that, then I imagine fines would start being levied.

QUESTION

More on who needs to comply with ADA pool lift regulations.

Would the following need to comply:
-Mobile home parks
-Private country clubs
-Private swim clubs

ANSWER

Normally, any type of residential entity would be exempt from ADA jurisdiction. In the case of a mobile home park, if it is a long term facility that operates like a HOA and restricts use of the pool to residents and their guests, they would be exempt from ADA. However, transient parks, that cater to campers and short term occupants, would be treated like a hotel, and subject to ADA requirements.

Private country clubs are exempt. However, there are strict criteria that defines a private club. In addition, the private club must restrict the use of their pool to members and their guests. If the club rents out the facility to outsiders for corporate outings and the like, this would be considered a public accommodation and would trigger the need to meet ADA requirements.

Here is a link to a white paper that explains this subject in more detail:

http://poollifts.com/pdf/whitepapers/WhoMustComply.pdf

John Caden• Here is the section of the law that defines who is subject to ADA regulations:

II-1.2000 Public accommodations. The broad range of title III obligations relating to "places of public accommodation" must be met by entities that the Department of Justice regulation labels as "public accommodations. " In order to be considered a public accommodation with title III obligations, an entity must be private and it must --
Own;
Lease;
Lease to; or
Operate
a place of public accommodation.
What is a place of public accommodation? A place of public accommodation is a facility whose operations --
Affect commerce; and
Fall within at least one of the following 12 categories:
1)Places of lodging (e.g. , inns, hotels, motels) (except for owner-occupied establishments renting fewer than six rooms);
2) Establishments serving food or drink (e.g. , restaurants and bars);
3) Places of exhibition or entertainment (e.g. , motion picture houses, theaters, concert halls, stadiums);
4) Places of public gathering (e.g. , auditoriums, convention centers, lecture halls);
5) Sales or rental establishments (e.g. , bakeries, grocery stores, hardware stores, shopping centers);
6) Service establishments (e.g. , Laundromats, dry-cleaners, banks, barber shops, beauty shops, travel services, shoe repair services, funeral parlors, gas stations, offices of accountants or lawyers, pharmacies, insurance offices, professional offices of health care providers, hospitals);
7) Public transportation terminals, depots, or stations (not including facilities relating to air transportation);
8) Places of public display or collection (e.g. , museums, libraries, galleries);
9) Places of recreation (e.g. , parks, zoos, amusement parks);
10) Places of education (e.g. , nursery schools, elementary, secondary, undergraduate, or postgraduate private schools);
11) Social service center establishments (e.g. , day care centers, senior citizen centers, homeless shelters, food banks, adoption agencies); and
12) Places of exercise or recreation (e.g. , gymnasiums, health spas, bowling alleys, golf courses).

The question regarding private schools is covered under section 10. Camps would fall under Section 9.

QUESTION

Will the pool lift manufactures reach a point where it will take a long time to ship orders as March 2012 nears?

ANSWER

Patrick Smith • Well, with a limited number of manufacturers and with as many pools that need to become compliant, I would say that would be a very likely possibility. We have been encouraging dealers to encourage their customers to buy early while demand is lower.

QUESTION

Do any states have different requirements than the Federal ADA guidelines for pool lifts?

ANSWER

John Caden The only state that I am aware of that deviates from the ADA guidelines for swimming pool lifts is California. The California Builder's Code stipulates that pool lifts should include are rests. Arm rests are not required in the ADA regulations.

QUESTION

Do pool lifts need to be grounded?

ANSWER

John Caden • Grounding requirements and procedures are subject to local code requirements. Contractors should contact their local authorities to find out exactly what is required in their jurisdiction.

For example, some areas will allow separate grounding rods, while others require the anchor to be added to the existing bonding grid.

QUESTION

It is my understanding, in reading the ADA compliance requirement, that Pools/Spas open to the public are needing to install the lifts and ramps. Am I to assume that establishments that are NOT public do not need to install these new devices?

ANSWER

John Caden In general, any type of facility that restricts use of their pool to members/residents and their guests are exempt from ADA obligations. However, if any of these types of facilities (apartments, condos, HOA's, or private clubs) allow their pools to be used as public accommodations, they would then be required to follow ADA regulations.

Here is a link to a white paper that explains this in more detail: http://poollifts.com/pdf/whitepapers/WhoMustComply.pdf

QUESTION

Does anyone have photos of anchors for pool lifts being installed that we can share?

ANSWER

John Caden Here is a link to a series of photos that show the installation of a deck anchor into a paver deck:

http://gallery.me.com/johncaden#100167

QUESTION

It appears that all wading pools will need to close or install a ramp. Is this correct?

ANSWER

John Caden  No. This is not correct.

Any barrier removal modification must be "readily achievable." This means, able to be done without much difficulty or expense. In order to provide a safe level of accessibility to an existing, flat bottom wading pool, the entire pool would need to be excavated and re-graded to provide the requires sloped entry. This process would likely cost as much as the original installation, and would not be considered to be readily achievable.

A portable ramp would not be a safe solution, considering the way wading pools are used. Since children frequently run through the water in a wading pool, this type of ramp would be an obstruction and potential tripping hazard.

Keep in mind that barrier removal is an ongoing responsibility. What is not readily achievable today, may change in the future. In this case, if e wading poll were ever relocated to make way for future construction, at that time the pool would need to meet 2010 ADA requirements.

QUESTION

Is there a legal form or process to follow to claim that compliance for wading pools, or other compliance issues, isn't "readily achievable"? I would think facilities would want to be proactive in regards to this issue.

ANSWER

John Caden Any facility should perform a "barrier removal analysis" to determine 1) if their pool is under ADA jurisdiction and 2) what steps are necessary to provide compliant accessibility and if this compliance is readily achievable.

Once this analysis has been performed, the facility should develop an "implementation plan" to determine their course of action. This plan should be documented and kept on file within the facility in the event that any complaints are lodged against them in the future. Having a documented plan will demonstrate that the facility has been proactive with respect to their obligations under the law.

If we take your wading pool to use as an example, the analysis would show that they recognize that their wading pool falls under ADA jurisdiction. However, their implementation plan would show that they have determined that the cost to re-grade the pool in order to install the required sloped entry would cost $50,000 and they cannot afford this level of expense. Hence, in this case the barrier removal is not readily achievable. This documentation should be filed within the premises as a safeguard against any future complaints.

Here is a link to a Compliance Guide that we have developed to assist any facility in completing their barrier removal analysis:

http://www.srsmith.com/_posted_resources/ADA-Compliance-Guide040811.pdf

QUESTION

What does it take to be eligible for tax credits with ADA pool lifts?

ANSWER

John CadenHere is a link to a fact sheet that summarizes all information with respect to tax opportunities.

http://www.poollifts.com/pdf/tax_info/Important%20Tax%20Incentives%20for%20Improving%20Accessibility.pdf

Patrick Smith • Basically, it is less than $1,000,000 in revenue or fewer than 30 employees. There are also tax deductions for most businesses.

QUESTION

It is my understanding that most apartment buildings will not need to comply with the new ADA Pool Lift Regulations. Can anyone back this up?

ANSWER

Patrick Smith • This is correct. Unless apartments open their pools to the general public, they will not have to follow ADA. The ADA does not govern residences. Apartments qualify as a residence. They are, however, governed by the Fair Housing Act.

Patrick SmithHOA and Condos fall under the same jurisdiction as apartments. If the HOA pool is only used by residents and their guests, they don't fall under the ADA. The same for condos. However, if the HOA makes their pool available to the public, then they will have to comply. For example, the HOA next to us rents their pool out to various organizations. They will have to comply. Condos that regularly rent to the public, like beach condos, will have to comply.