Problems persist with improperly installed automatic doors

Accessibility to the Student Union Memorial Center is still difficult for physically disabled people, but improving access is still a high priority, said Dan Adams, director of the union.

Push-button door-openers in the union are too high for some wheelchair-users to reach, and sometimes the buttons fail to work.

"The whole issue of automatic door openers has been moved up to a higher level," said John Mosser, disability access coordinator for the University of Arizona Disability Resource Center.

Compared to other push-button door openers on campus, the union door openers require repairs more often, he said.

"The doors require a lot of maintenance to maintain a smooth swing," Mosser said.

Adams said he is trying hard to make sure all problems with union doors are fixed. "We don't want anyone with a disability to feel like a second-class citizen," he said.

All maintenance problems in the union are on a list and then prioritized based on their level of importance, Adams said.

Battery glitches were attributed to buttons that failed to work when they were first installed, said Bob Bertolini, senior project superintendent for the union construction, but he said he does not know of any problems with the buttons now.

"The door openers are working fine," Bertolini said.

Compared to the union, high traffic at other buildings has not caused the batteries on other push-button door openers to wear out as quickly, Mosser said.

Adams said he believes that batteries as well as other mechanical problems caused the initial annoyances for those who use the doors.

"(The union) is not the greatest," said Jon Alberding, a biological medical engineering graduate student and a wheelchair-user. "I would give it a six or seven on a 10-point scale."

William Muir, a political science professor who uses a wheelchair, said he recognizes that accessibility problems can always be perfected but said he currently finds the union convenient.