Handicap Accessible Doors Installed at Mining & Rollo Jamison Museums

The City of Platteville's Museums Department completed a project this April to make the Museums more accessible to all visitors and community members.  Funding from the City of Platteville and the Platteville Community Foundation’s Robert & Marian Graham Community Fund allowed the Museums to contract with Schmidt Electric to purchase and install door openers at our main entrance and bathrooms.  This allows access to the museum galleries and restrooms for all, regardless of ability level and disabilities. 

“As a public institution, the Mining and Rollo Jamison Museums have a responsibility to comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act that was enacted over 25 years ago. Ensuring the public has access to our public collection and programs is essential to achieving our mission,” says Director Diana Bolander.   “The Museums have made many strides over the years to update the historic buildings and programs to ensure that everyone has access, including installing an elevator in the 1905 Hanmer Robbins Building so that all can access exhibit spaces, renovating the public restrooms to make them wheelchair accessible, and creating a video tour of the 1845 Bevans Lead Mine for visitors that cannot traverse the 90 stairs in and out of the mine.”

One of the barriers to access that remained was that the entrances to the public areas of the museum and the public restrooms could not be opened by those in wheelchairs or by those with limited dexterity of their hands and arms. Installing opener buttons on two exterior doors and two bathroom doors ensures that all have access to our facilities.  Funding for this project came from a grant from the Platteville Community Fund’s Robert & Marian Graham Community Fund, from the City of Platteville’s Capitol Improvement Funds, and from Museum earned income.  The Museums would like to express their sincere thanks to all involved in seeing this project through to completion.