FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CR
MONDAY, MAY 19, 1997 (202) 616-2777
TDD (202) 514-1888
FRIENDLY'S TO MAKE RESTAURANTS ACCESSIBLE TO CUSTOMERS WITH
DISABILITIES UNDER SETTLEMENT WITH THE JUSTICE DEPARTMENT
WASHINGTON, D.C. -- The Friendly Ice Cream Corporation, one
of the nation's largest family restaurant chains, will make its
704 restaurants more accessible to diners with disabilities under
a settlement reached today with the Justice Department.
The agreement, filed today in U.S. District Court in Boston,
affects more restaurants than any other agreement the Justice
Department has ever reached under the Americans with Disabilities
Act. It sets out the steps the company will take to ensure that
patrons with disabilities will have full access to Friendly's
restaurants across the country.
"For diners with disabilities, ADA compliance is the real
welcome sign on the door of every restaurant," said Attorney
General Janet Reno, who announced the agreement at a press
conference today in Boston. "Today's agreement will make
Friendly's more accessible to 49 million Americans with
disabilities."
The Justice Department began investigating Friendly's in
1995 after receiving information that some of its restaurants may
not have been accessible. After the investigation revealed that
most Friendly's restaurants failed to satisfy the requirements of
the ADA, the company entered into negotiations with the Justice
Department.
"More Americans with disabilities will now be able to eat
out with their families and friends," said Donald K. Stern, U.S.
Attorney in Boston. "Thanks to this agreement we can now tell
restaurant patrons with disabilities that Friendly's is truly
living up to its name -- it is working to ensure that its
restaurants are friendly and welcoming to all."
Under today's agreement, Friendly's will embark on a six-
year program to make the chain of 704 restaurants more accessible
to individuals with disabilities. In the first year of the
program, Friendly's will alter the entrances at 93 restaurants --
removing steps, widening doorways, and redesigning vestibules --
to eliminate barriers to wheelchair access.
In addition, Friendly's will:
* redesign dining areas to accommodate wheelchair users;
* make parking areas accessible and provide accessible routes
to an accessible entrance by installing curb cuts, where
necessary;
* provide an accessible path of travel within the restaurant,
which includes providing detectable warnings or removing
objects, such as coat hooks, that protrude into the path of
travel and present a danger to patrons with vision
impairments;
* modify counter heights to make them accessible;
* relocate telephones, mirrors, and paper towel dispensers to
make them accessible to people using wheelchairs;
* make existing restrooms accessible or construct accessible
restrooms;
* replace inaccessible doorknobs that impede access to people
who have limited manual dexterity;
* assist customers with mobility impairments to reach goods in
self-service areas;
* read menus to patrons who are blind or provide them in audio
format; and,
* pay $50,000 to the U.S. treasury.
"With this agreement, Friendly's has shown its commitment to
making access a priority," added Stern, who noted that the
restaurant chain cooperated with the Justice Department.
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 restaurants, to remove any physical barriers to access
when it is readily achievable to do so. Buildings constructed
later must be built in compliance with guidelines known as the
ADA Standards for Accessible Design.
Friendly's restaurants are located in the following states:
Massachusetts (154); Connecticut (71); Delaware (7); Florida
(15); Maine (9); Maryland (34); Michigan (2); New Hampshire (20);
New Jersey (66); New York (167); Ohio (60); Pennsylvania (64);
Vermont (9); Virginia (18); Rhode Island (8).
Today's agreement, which is enforceable through the court,
must still be approved by a federal District Court judge in
Boston.
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 reach out to businesses to
urge voluntary compliance with the law. The campaign, which
includes television and radio public service announcements,
features a toll-free ADA information line 800-514-0301 or 800-
514-0383 (TDD) and an ADA home page on the World Wide Web at:
http://www.usdoj.gov/crt/ada/adahom1.htm
# # #
97-206