Activists move against Binion’s, Fremont Street Experience

Thursday, May 3, 2001 | 11:20 a.m.

A local activist group is demanding $228,750 in penalties from Binion's Horseshoe Club for alleged violations of the federal Americans with Disabilities Act.

Nevadans for Equal Access, which fights on behalf of individuals who are disabled for better access to local businesses, sued the downtown hotel-casino in U.S. District Court in 1997. The group charged that facilities available to the public, including rest rooms, snack bars and hotel rooms, were not in compliance with the 1990 federal law.

The parties reached an out-of-court settlement in October 1998. But Nevadans for Equal Access on Tuesday filed a motion in federal court seeking penalties of $250 a day extending to the time of the settlement. The group's president, Paul Martin, said that as part of the settlement Binion's agreed to the penalty for any future ADA violations.

"As of April 30 the rest rooms still weren't compliant, the snack bars weren't compliant and the hotel rooms weren't compliant," Martin said. "Any money we receive will definitely go back into the community for improvements in terms of accessibility."

Nevadans for Equal Access has successfully convinced dozens of local businesses since 1993 to comply with the ADA.

Attempts to reach a spokesperson for Binion's Horseshoe were unsuccessful.

Separately, a Salt Lake City-based activist group filed a motion for summary judgment in its Americans with Disabilities Act suit against the operators of the Fremont Street Experience, a downtown Las Vegas tourist attraction.

In a motion filed in U.S. District Court in Las Vegas Tuesday, the Disabled Rights Action Committee listed several new examples of accessibility issues at the Experience, a light show attraction built to bring visitors to downtown casinos.

Ronald Ray Smith, program manager of the group, sought an injunction against the Fremont Street Experience in 1998 and has filed suits or brought complaints against the Rio, Harrah's and Orleans hotel-casinos and the Subway sandwich chain on various ADA complaints in recent months.

In the most recent motion, Smith said after visits April 19 and April 21, he discovered new accessibility problems at a patio extending from the Golden Nugget hotel-casino, employee work areas at a performance stage and a parking garage, a temporary bar at Fitzgeralds and other facilities extending from the Four Queens hotel-casino and Tommy's Mobile Grill.

"I think these new problems show that the Fremont Street Experience is not policing the ADA law properly," said Salt Lake City attorney Richard Armknecht III, who is representing the committee.

Smith and co-plaintiffs Robert and Carol Lee, all Las Vegans who use wheelchairs or motorized scooters, are asking that the Fremont Street Experience comply with the ADA law, which assures accessibility to people with disabilities.

Patrick Reilly, an attorney representing the Fremont Street Experience, said the attraction has worked with the committee to resolve past problems. He said he has not seen the most recent complaint, but "if there are issues to be discussed, we will work to resolve them quickly."

Reilly also filed a motion for summary judgment asking that the complaints be dismissed.

Visiting Judge Justin Quackenbush of Washington state is expected to consider both motions in a hearing May 24.