Politics & Government

Farmington Woman's Lawsuit Paves the Way for Handicapped Access at State Building

Jill Babcock says the City of Farmington immediately made accommodations when she was appointed to the planning commission. She can't say the same thing about her employer.

Attend a  Planning Commission meeting, and you'll likely see commissioner Jill Babcock, who uses a wheelchair, roll up a ramp to the dais.

"I commend the City of Farmington," she said. "From my first meeting, I was met with this inclusive attitude that amazes me." 

But while the city made sure accommodations were in place, Babcock is still waiting for her employer, the Michigan Economic Development Corporation (MEDC), to do the same. A senior research specialist, she was transferred from Lansing to Cadillac Place in Detroit last fall and quickly found obstacle after obstacle as she tried to get to work.

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She tried for months to get the problems fixed, but after she received an email telling employees in Lansing they could temporarily use handicapped parking spaces if their assigned spaces were blocked, Babcock realized she was dealing with a much larger problem: "acceptable discrimination". 

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"When that email came about a month ago, that was the last straw," she said. "It became apparent to me that it was not just me as an individual, but whoever came to the building to do business could have difficulty ... I just couldn't handle it any more."

Represented by noted disability rights attorney Richard Bernstein, Babcock filed a lawsuit July 10 in U.S. District Court. The lawsuit doesn't seek any monetary damages, but aims to force the state, which leases the building, and owner Michigan Strategic Fund to comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), Bernstein said.

Babcock describes her condition as "an undiagnosed form of ataxia", a disease with symptoms that resemble multiple sclerosis. Once an athlete, the 41-year-old Farmington resident said she has been in a wheelchair for about six years. Having been to the Cadillac Place building before she started working there, Babcock said, she had "a lot of concerns" before she was transferred.

Bernstein, who is blind, cannot contain his frustration as he talks about suing to get a state agency to comply with federal law. "What the state has done that is most regrettable is that they've put signs around saying the building is ADA (compliant), and it's not," he said. "That's reprehensible. It puts people in danger." 

Babcock said since she filed her lawsuit, other employees with disabilities have told her they have similar problems, but didn't feel they could come forward. 

"I was raised in such a manner that equality was at the forefront," she said. "I think of my family, they're all advocates. We're all very vocal." 

Babcock grew up in Lansing, then lived in downtown Detroit before coming to Farmington six years ago. She said she loves her job, finds the work challenging. And even through the difficulties, she loved working downtown, next to the Fisher building, especially during the holiday season.

"It's worth the effort," Babcock said of her work. "But it shouldn't be an effort." 


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