Wheelchair user sues Bronx Zoo over access

From The NY Post:

A wheelchair-bound polio victim says trying to get around the Bronx Zoo is just beastly.

Modesto Hernandez filed suit against the famed wildlife park June 24, claiming that "excessive slopes, cross slopes and lack of proper handrails" keep him from making his way around the animal exhibits.

The Manhattan federal court filing also says poor design keeps the Bronx man from using water fountains and bathrooms throughout the 265-acre retreat, and alleges "a lack of an adequate number of fully accessible parking spaces."

Hernandez' suit -- which charges violations of the Americans with Disabilities Act and the state Human Rights Law -- seeks unspecified damages and an order mandating alterations so the zoo is "accessible to and useable (sic) by individuals with disabilities."

"Removal of the barriers to access located on the property is readily achievable, reasonably feasible and easily accomplishable without placing an undue burden on defendants," the court papers say.

Neither the Wildlife Conservation Society, which runs the zoo, nor the city Department of Parks and Recreation, which owns it, responded immediately to requests for comment.