# 198

August 5, 1996

The Honorable Steven C. LaTourette
Member, U.S. House of Representatives
1 Victoria Place, Room 320
Painesville, Ohio  44077

Dear Congressman LaTourette:

     This letter is in response to your inquiry on behalf of your
constituent, XXXXXXXXXX, concerning the requirements of the
Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA) applicable to the
Pine Ridge Country Club.  We apologize for the delay in our
response.

     Under title III of the ADA, an entity that owns, operates,
leases, or leases to a place of public accommodation, must ensure
that ADA standards are met in all of its activities, alterations
and new construction.  There are 12 categories of places of
public accommodation, including places of recreation and
exercise.

     If the Pine Ridge Country Club is covered by title III, it
must, among other things, reasonably modify its policies to
prevent discrimination on the basis of disability.  If it
occupies a facility that was existing on the effective date of
the ADA, it must remove barriers to access in the facility to the
extent it is readily achievable to do so.  The enclosed
regulation implementing title III sets out the requirements in
greater detail.  

     Even if the Pine Ridge Country Club would otherwise fit into
one of the categories of places of public accommodation, it will
be exempt from title III's coverage if it is a private club. 
Whether a particular facility is a private club is a case-by-case
determination, based on a variety of factors that have been
recognized by courts.  We cannot make a particular determination
of whether the Pine Ridge Country Club constitutes a private
club, but some of the factors to be considered in such a
determination are the following:

     (1)  whether the club is highly selective in choosing   
          members;
     (2)  whether the club membership exercises a high       
          degree of control over the establishment's         
          operations;
     (3)  whether the organization has historically been     
          intended to be a private club;
     (4)  the degree to which the establishment is opened up 
          to non-members;
     (5)  the purpose of the club's existence;
     (6)  the breadth of the club's advertising for members;
     (7)  whether the club is non-profit;
     (8)  the degree to which the club observes formalities;
     (9)  whether substantial membership fees are charged;
     (10) the degree to which the club receives public       
          funding; and
     (11) whether the club was created or is being used to   
          avoid compliance with a civil rights act.

     Nonetheless, private clubs are still covered by title III to
the extent that they open up their establishments to the general
public for a purpose that falls within one of the categories of
places of public accommodation.  Thus, if the Club hosts events
that are open to persons other than the members and their guests,
the Club must make the public areas accessible during those
events.  The more often such public events occur, the higher the
obligation to make the publicly used areas accessible.

     If XXXXXXXXX believes that the Pine Ridge Country Club is a
place of public accommodation and not a private club, she may
file her complaint with the Department of Justice.  Enclosed
please find information about how to file a title III complaint.  

     I hope this information will be of assistance in responding
to your constituent.

                            Sincerely,




                         Deval L. Patrick
                    Assistant Attorney General
                      Civil Rights Division


Enclosures