[Ansteorra] SCA, the ADA, and all of us

[Chiara Francesca]

Greetings Ld Adm Robert Haddock

You say that you know there are sites in North Texas that are ADA compliant.

Have you ever actually driven out, walked the site, and met with the owners 
of the sites?

Have you priced out all these sites?

Have you actually combed through the site to confirm they are ADA compliant?

We just spent the last 6 months updating our site search spreadsheet for 
Steppes Warlord. Our Business and populace meetings have been very 
passionate of late when discussing the issue of moving much less any other 
issue.

We found promising camping sites. For us running Steppes Warlord that means 
that out of 20 sites the promising sites allowed Equestrian, Archery, light 
fighting, heavy figthing, and camping for a minimum of 500. Those are the 
basics you look for first.

But the reality of it is, this is what we found for a majority of them 
before we even look at minimum ADA compliance:

1) They are all rented a year or more in advance.

2) They start at 3000.00 for a day (most groups budget a _maximum_ of 
1500.00 for the whole weekend just for a site with a hall, not including the 
per head charge, porta pots, security guards, etc.)

3) They do not allow Equestrian.

4) If they allow Equestrian they do not allow Archery, and vice versa.

5) They have a 10pm curfew and lock their gate.

6) They ban alcohol. Unless you want to hire an off duty police officer, 1 
per 50 or so participants, depending on the site owner you may be able to 
have 1 for every 100 participants.

7) They do not allow pets.

8) Some do not allow tenting, you must stay in their cabins so they site can 
comply with their federal grant funding.

9) No outside food can be brought in, you must pay for their catering 
service.

I could go on, and have but frankly I loath long emails and know that many 
of us do not read past the first paragraph of any email.

My Point.
We have looked for ADA compliant sites to the degree of what you are wanting 
(there are different levels). By we I mean Event Stewards, Seneschals, 
Barons, and do not forget our Baroness'. To book most (not all but about 90% 
of them) ADA compliant sites means that we have them for one day, no 
camping, no alcohol, no fighting, no equestrian, no archery, no feast, and 
believe it or not, no animals of any kind no matter what their purpose is.

ADA is not what you think it is.

Please take care who you chastise and why. Do personal research, be the 
leader you expect to see out of the rest of us, email event stewards, email 
all the others you list before you set off on a quest to fight a windmill 
that has already been conquored and is actually a hand held fan that is very 
easy to work with.

Chiara Francesca