The City of Lathrop wants to improve accessibility for residents and visitors to the community with disabilities.

And they want your input as they begin that process.

On Thursday, Jan. 11, representatives from the City of Lathrop will host the second Americans With Disabilities Act Stakeholder Workshop – an attempt to hear directly from the people in the community about the concerns that they have that can be addressed as part of the city’s extensive overhaul.

The meeting will take place inside of the council chambers at Lathrop City Hall – located at 390 Towne Centre Drive – from 6 to 7:30 p.m.

Those in attendance can learn about the ADA Transition Plan process, compliance requirements, and the best practices for creating a more inclusive community as the City of Lathrop updates its ADA Transition & Self-Evaluation Plan.

The workshop will also cover:

*The organization’s commitment to accessibility.

*A review of the current ADA Transition Plan Progress.

*Shared insights, suggestions, and experiences.

*Q & A session.

*Ways on how to contribute to accessibility initiatives.

Earlier this year the Lathrop City Council approved spending more than $81,000 to perform ADA upgrades to the Lathrop council chambers – including the installation of a new wheelchair ramp to provide access to the council dais.

The old wheelchair ramp had a slope, according to the city at the time, that was out of compliance and was not wide enough. Considering that the city’s business is conducted on that dais every month, the decision was made to ensure that the city was conforming with the law in the place where the public watches the council enact new laws and enforce existing ones.

The workshop – the second held by the city to gather input – aims to gather input from stakeholders in the community that have a vested interest in ensuring that the ADA is followed in the community. Those that show up will get an update on the city’s progress with the ADA transition plan, in addition to getting to offer their input and share concerns about current ADA compliance within the city.

While it has been several years, the focus of ADA Compliance became a hot topic for local governments and businesses after Carmichael attorney Scott Johnson began peppering businesses with lawsuits claiming that he was discriminated against because the business was not in compliance with the ADA.

Johnson uses a wheelchair.

After filing more than 4,000 lawsuits across the State of California where he was named as the plaintiff, Johnson found himself in court late last year when he was charged with underreporting the proceeds from those lawsuits for tax purposes.

This past summer Johnson was sentenced to 18 months of home confinement for the violations.

For additional information about the scope of the work being conducted at City Hall or other business pertaining to bringing the city into compliance with the ADA, visit the City of Lathrop’s website at www.ci.lathrop.ca.us.

Those wishing to attend the upcoming workshop are encouraged to RSVP by contacting Lathrop ADA Coordinator Carlos Carrillo at 209.941.7422 or by emailing ccarrillo@ci.lathrop.ca.us.

To contact Bulletin reporter Jason Campbell email jcampbell@mantecabulletin.com.