Senior center bathrooms non-compliant with ADA

The Hot Springs County Commissioners had a busy agenda during their meeting on Tuesday covering things from Youth Alternatives to the Senior Center along with other business.

Barb Rice, director of the Youth Alternatives program, reported to the commissioners that the eight students she currently has in the program have been working hard this past month, doing a lot of community service.

The students worked at the Hot Springs County Fair, did some work for the Master Gardeners, helped serve breakfast at the fly-in at the airport and most recently, spent Labor Day getting the playground ready for the little ones at CRC.

In addition, they have finished the new shelter at the skate park and are awaiting the picnic tables that will go with it. Much of the material was donated by Merit Energy.

Rice has been having meetings in an attempt to develop a proposal for funding to work with the Help Center on life skills training and more community service projects that could benefit people coming into the Help Center.

FBO at Hot Springs County Airport, Nate Messenger, said they had a good amount of fuel sales for the month of August with more jet fuel being sold than av-gas for the first time.

Messenger said the numbers were down a bit at the fly-in compared to last year’s attendance, but the crowd which came in for the eclipse made up for it with everyone having a great time.

Five of the eight T-hangars from the former airport have been moved to the new airport, and there is just one plane remaining at the old facility. That plane and the hangars will have to be moved shortly as the commissioners are discussing disking up the runway and surrounding area, leaving nowhere for the plane to take off.

Lisa Pierce, the new director at the Senior Center, advised the commissioners a review of the building has shown it to be out of compliance with the American’s with Disabilities Act (ADA) in several areas.

The bathrooms are non-compliant as they are too narrow to accommodate a wheel-chair bound user. In addition, the handicapped parking spaces at the front of the building, while painted with the requisite blue paint, are not marked with any kind of signage.

Something is going to have to be done about the condition of the parking lot to the north of the building as it is in terrible repair with missing chunks of concrete and uneven surfaces. The slope going into the building is no longer ADA compliant. It was in compliance when originally built, but is no longer in compliance.

The roof on the center is also going to need to be replaced as soon as possible due to a number of leaks.

“It is really important to the seniors to have a place to go, to socialize and to get out of the house each day,” Pierce said.

The commissioners made the decision to update the county’s website using a company out of Casper that has developed websites for other county and state agencies.

The current website is rather static and a bit hard for the department heads to make changes to their particular portion of the site. With the new website, each department can update their sections more easily and more sections can be added as needed for things such as commissioner’s minutes.

The commissioners approved up to $7,000 for the building and training of a new site.

In other business, maintenance supervisor, Chuck Carver, resigned his position to the commissioners at Tuesday’s meeting, effective immediately.

Cynthia Garbin was appointed as the newest member of the Hot Springs County Museum and Cultural Center Board and a liquor permit was renewed for the Quality Inn which has a new lounge added to their property.