Humboldt County reports progress on ADA compliance; estimates $53.4 million program and flags a $9 million funding gap

Humboldt County staff reported to the Board of Supervisors on the county’s Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) compliance effort and the multi-year program to remove architectural and digital barriers across county facilities and online services. The board voted 5-0 to receive and file the report.

Assistant County Administrative Officer and county ADA coordinator Karen Clower briefed the board, saying the county has remediated a large share of barriers identified in a prior U.S. Department of Justice consent decree and is expanding accessibility work beyond that list. “Of the 1,533 barriers specifically identified in the consent decree, 1,424, or 93% of those barriers are now compliant,” Clower said. She also presented counts of broader work: staff reported 13,885 total barriers identified across impacted facilities, of which 7,213 (52%) are complete; and 1,983 of 4,800 barriers (41%) in other county facilities are complete.

Costs, schedule and funding needs

Clower told the board the county estimates the full ADA compliance program at roughly $53.4 million and said staff currently project a funding shortfall of about $9 million to complete the program under the existing finance plan. The county’s finance plan had anticipated funding about $19.8 million; general-fund contributions and grants are expected to provide additional amounts (staff cited roughly $14.3 million from the general fund and about $8.1 million from other grants or cost-shares). Clower said the county anticipates completing the overall program by 2040 and that work has shifted from high-volume, quick fixes into larger construction and retrofit projects that are costlier and take longer to design and build.

Recent and planned projects

ADA project manager Travis Smith summarized recent projects completed or under construction, using before-and-after photos for public restrooms at the courthouse, a Department of the District Attorney flooring and break-room renovation, the Fortuna Library accessibility project (state-funded grant), Big Lagoon County Park campground/day-use upgrades (Prop 68-per-capita funding), Ferndale Veterans Hall accessibility improvements and an Ag Building renovation scheduled to begin in September. Several projects required overnight or after-hours work to avoid disrupting court operations or daily services.

Clower and Smith also discussed curb-ramp upgrades (Public Works reports 373 of 1,485 required curb ramps have been certified as compliant), website accessibility (county currently meets about 74% of WCAG 2.1 AA requirements), and use of grants and deferred-maintenance funds to support work. Staff said fiscal-year 2024–25 project spending was about $1.9 million and estimated FY 2025–26 project costs at about $7.3 million.

Board reaction and action

Supervisors praised staff work and inquired about the consent-decree obligations and the relationship with the Department of Justice. Staff said the county was released from the consent decree’s active oversight because it had remediated the items required for release but noted the county remains responsible for completing outstanding barriers and that new construction must be fully compliant. After public comment and discussion, a supervisor moved to receive and file the report; the motion carried 5-0.

Ending

County officials said the program will continue for years and emphasized a combination of in-house work and grant-funded projects to accelerate compliance while managing costs. Staff requested continued board support for financing and completion of remaining projects.