Disability Commission votes 4-0 against hotel rear-lift plan

Other Committee · Meeting of July 14, 2026

Northampton Disability Commission votes 4-0 against hotel's rear-lift accessibility plan. Commissioners rejected a request by the Sojourn Hotel at 3 Elm Street to install a rear wheelchair lift instead of a front ramp, with member Amy Lawton saying "sending people to a back of a building leaves a very bad taste in my mouth." The panel separately approved, 4-0 each, two smaller hotel variances covering shower-control placement and a noncompliant stair. Commissioners also gave informal support to 11 accessibility variance requests tied to the city's Main Street reconstruction, with a formal vote set for September 8.

City Councilor Dubs, elected the commission's new chair 4-0, reported the City Council adopted Chapter 40U of state law to strengthen snow-removal enforcement and that Carl Krueger, a retired 40-year human-services professional, was approved to join the commission.

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Source: the Other Committee meeting of July 14, 2026, reported from the official video recording and transcript.