Duane Reade Stores: Disability-Impaired

A lawsuit filed recently in federal court in Manhattan charges Duane Reade with violations of the Americans with Disabilities Act. The suit claims that the layout of many of the stores, particularly those with multiple levels and crowded aisles, make them inaccessible.

The suit demands that the New York-based drugstore chain eliminate all barriers in its stores to those with “mobility impairments.”

Duane Reade is one of the fastest-growing retailers in New York, with a total of 172 stores, 102 of them in high-traffic areas of Manhattan. Given the high cost and scarcity of commercial space in the city, and the need to make its stores as profitable per square foot as possible, Duane Reade has had to shoe-horn itself into some narrow and multi-level spaces. Some stores have been renovated to single levels, and some have added wheelchair lifts and ramps. But many continue to have inconveniently placed steps and stairways and aisles that are either narrow or cluttered or both, making access particularly difficult to pharmacies traditionally placed in the rear of the stores. In some cases, where the entrance is up several steps from the street or where staircases are the only access to upper levels, the retailer's response has been signs posted advising disabled persons to push buttons or ask for help.

Duane Reade has until mid-July to answer the complaint. “If we can make the stores easier to shop, we'll do so,” said James Rizzo, vp for human resources, “but that doesn't mean the store wasn't accessible before that.”