There’s an update on the Scioto County courthouse elevator repair, and it’s not that great.

According to Commissioner Bryan Davis, the single elevator in the county courthouse is being repaired by OTIS … but it will be out of service for a few more weeks.

“It is down for possible another two to three weeks. It suffered a major failure,” Davis said. “The repair company is on site and work is progressing.”

This may mean county offices on the upper floors of the courthouse could alter customer service practices while the elevator is out. Visitors to the historic building with mobility issues or physical disabilities should consider calling ahead if they plan to conduct business with the courts, the clerk’s legal or titles departments, and the commissioners, which are housed on the second and third floors.

“Offices are making all possible accommodations to the public at this time,” Davis said. “Other than offices on the first floor, those with ADA uissues should contact the office you are needing to visit prior to visiting to see if accommodations can be made.”

Issues with the elevator are not new and have happened periodically over the years. Davis said the commissioners are looking into a long-term solution, but are dealing with the current emergency.

“We are looking into a long-term fix. Right now the focus is to get the short-term fix done,” he said.

The elevator outage can potentially cause an undue difficulty for people with disabilities to access government services and conduct their business. That’s why the commissioners declared the issue an emergency in a meeting on Thursday, April 4.

“When we have emergencies, we have to take action,” Commissioner Scottie Powell said at that meeting. “We can’t let the public, the courts, the clerks — really everybody — this building serves take a hit because we’re waiting and waiting and waiting. Eventually, we can’t wait any longer.”

Commissioner Cathy Coleman said at the April 4 meeting that she had witnessed courthouse visitors leave without completing their business because the elevator was out.

“It has been an inconvenience, especially to our judges and their courts and scheduling,” Coleman said at the time. “We’ll get this taken care of as soon as we can.”

Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act applies to “all state and local governments and all departments, agencies, special purpose districts, and other instrumentalities of state or local government (“public entities”). It applies to all programs, services, or activities of public entities, from adoption services to zoning regulation,” according to ADA.gov.

The commissioners declared the elevator issue an emergency at a recent meeting, which is allowing it to be addressed quickly. Still, the fix may take up to three weeks.

Reach Lori McNelly at [email protected] or at (740) 353-3101 ext. 1928. © 2024 Portsmouth Daily Times, all rights reserved