The Leflore County Civic Center has undergone more than $200,000 worth of renovations to become more accessible to the handicapped.
In recent months, the Civic Center added three new handicap-accessible bathrooms to its facilities. The bathrooms offer powered doors that swing in or out with the push of a button. Inside the bathrooms are lowered toilet paper, paper towel racks and rails.
The Civic Center retired its old indoor ticket booth for a new outdoor one, which has a window that is marked as accessible to the handicapped. The Civic Center’s director, Andrew McQueen, said that the window is low enough that those in wheelchairs can access it with no problem. Counters at the concession stand have also been lowered.
In addition, the Civic Center altered its arena to be more accessible. There is now a ramp on the arena’s floor that slopes just under two feet off the ground to accommodate those who cannot get into the general seating area. McQueen said the ramp, located directly in front of seats closest to the floor, allows those with physical disabilities to see the stage clearly while still being near their friends and family members.
The last addition to the arena is an automatic lift for disabled people, McQueen said. Those who are in wheelchairs or are otherwise unable to climb the steps to the stage can enter the lift and be raised to stage level.
McQueen said the renovations came after a lawsuit alleging that the Civic Center was not accessible enough to disabled persons. “It was also something that just needed to be done,” he said.
In a recent letter to the Commonwealth, Beth Moore of Carrollton complained that attending events at the Civic Center as a handicapped person was challenging and inconvenient.
She had attended a concert there in March and another in July. Two of her main complaints were with the accessibility of the bathrooms and general seating.
McQueen said the newest additions to the Civic Center wouldn’t have been available in March but definitely would have been there in July. He suspects that Moore didn’t know of the improvements and therefore didn’t know to look for them. “She must’ve just gone to the same bathroom she went to before,” he said.
Moore said she was pleased to know that improvements had been made. She said she hoped the Civic Center would make these improvements more known and more visible.
“I didn’t see any of this stuff,” she said. “I’d like to know that things are being fixed.”
Moore said she had previously counted out returning to the Civic Center but is now eager to see the new installations.
McQueen said renovations are more than 90 percent complete.
• Contact Chloe Ricks at 581-7124 or cricks@gwcommonwealth.com.
