FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                                          CR
TUESDAY, APRIL 16, 1996                            (202) 616-2765
                                               TDD (202) 514-1888


  UNITED ARTISTS TO MAKE THEATERS ACCESSIBLE TO MOVIEGOERS WITH
       DISABILITIES UNDER AGREEMENT WITH JUSTICE DEPARTMENT


     WASHINGTON, D.C. -- United Artists Theatre Circuit, Inc.,
one of the nation's largest theater chains, will make its
theaters more accessible to moviegoers with disabilities under an
agreement reached today with the Justice Department and a group
of disability rights advocates.
     "Americans with disabilities will now be able to go to the
movies with their families and friends," said Assistant Attorney
General for Civil Rights Deval L. Patrick.  "Thanks to United
Artists, we can now tell moviegoers with disabilities, 'access is
coming soon to a theater near you.'"
     The Justice Department began investigating United Artists in
1992, after receiving complaints that some of its theaters were
not accessible.  Last August, after learning about a private suit
raising similar issues, the Justice Department entered settlement
talks to resolve the matter and today it joined that lawsuit.
     The suit, filed by several California residents and the
Disability Rights Education and Defense Fund ("DREDF") of
Berkeley, claimed that the Colorado-based company violated the
Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), as well as California
state law.  
     It alleged that some of the California theaters had
insufficient seating for moviegoers with mobility impairments or
provided the seating in the back row where they could not sit
with their families.  Today's agreement between the parties
resolves the suit.
     United Artists owns or operates more than 400 theaters
nationwide, with more than 2,300 screens, that were built before
January 26, 1993. 
     Under today's agreement, United Artists will begin modifying
theaters, where necessary, and will complete the work by 2001. 
It will:
    provide a sufficient number of spaces in theaters for
     wheelchairs in such a way that moviegoers in wheelchairs
     will be able to sit with families and friends;
     
    make sure that at least two spaces in theaters with more
     than 300 seats are somewhere other than in the back row so
     that they have more of a choice of seating locations;

    ensure that one percent of all seats in existing theaters
     have folding or removable aisle-side armrests for semi-
     ambulatory persons or persons who wish to transfer from
     wheelchairs into a seat; 

    make parking areas accessible and provide accessible routes
     to an accessible entrance;

    make existing restrooms accessible or construct accessible
     unisex restrooms and modify concession stands, telephones,
     and drinking fountains where necessary;

    ensure that theaters constructed in the future will comply
     with the law's new construction standards.

     United Artists also will modify 22 newly-constructed
theaters that opened after January 26, 1993 to bring them into
full compliance with the ADA's new construction standards.  The
company will fix about half the newly-constructed theaters by
September 30, 1996 and modify the other theaters by June 30,
1997.
     "With this agreement, United Artists has taken the lead in
making access in the entertainment industry a priority," added
Patrick.  
     Under California law, United Artists will also pay monetary
damages to the plaintiffs who filed the private suit and will set
up a $429,000 fund for moviegoers with disabilities who can show
they encountered physical barriers at California theaters built
after July 1982.  California law, unlike the ADA, required
theaters in the state to become accessible more than 14 years ago
and enables persons to seek compensatory damages on their own.  
     Finally, United Artists will pay $1,000 to each of the four
individuals who filed complaints with the Justice Department
under the ADA.
     The ADA, passed in July 1990, prohibits discrimination
against persons with disabilities.  Title III of the Act requires
public accommodations that were built prior to January 26, 1993,
such as movie theaters, to remove any physical barriers to access
when it is readily achievable to do so.  Buildings constructed
later must be built in compliance with certain guidelines known
as the ADA's Standards for Accessible Design.
     United Artists has more than 400 theaters located in the
following states:  Arizona (8); Arkansas (6); California (76);
Colorado (26); Connecticut (1); Florida (32); Georgia (19); Idaho
(4); Indiana (2); Kansas (1); Louisiana (21); Maryland (5);
Michigan (11); Minnesota (11); Mississippi (20); Missouri (1);
Nevada (5); New Jersey (10); New Mexico (11); New York (44);
North Carolina (12); Oklahoma (9); Pennsylvania (34); Puerto Rico
(3); South Carolina (8); Texas (37); Virginia (8); Washington
(1); West Virginia (2); Wisconsin (6).
     The agreement, filed today in U.S. District Court in San
Francisco, must still be approved by Judge Thelton E. Henderson.
      In 1994, Attorney General Janet Reno launched a national
campaign to educate Americans about their rights and obligations
under the ADA.  She is committed to reaching out to businesses to
urge voluntary compliance with the law.  The campaign, which
includes television and radio public service announcements,
advertises a toll-free ADA information line.  The number is 800-
514-0301 or 800-514-0383 (TDD).
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