Disability Lawsuit

December 21 - The city of Wichita will have to spend big bucks to make sure all of it's buildings are accessible to people with disabilities, after the city council settles a lawsuit brought by an advocacy group for the disabled.

The settlement means massive changes must be made all over the city. The cost to make the city more accessible to those with disabilities will be considerable.

In January the Independent Living Resource Center filed a lawsuit charging there were hundreds of violation of the Americans with Disabilities Act on city properties.

That includes lack of parking and inadequate ramps at City Hall, the library and the airport.

Now the city council has agreed to make changes.

The city will hire a consultant to look at exactly what changes must be made and come up with a plan to fix the problems.

It will be up to a year before the city knows exactly how much it will all cost. And it will take even longer to make sure all properties are accessible for those with disabilities. It could take five years to complete all the changes.