Accessibility reviews completed for 28 Monroe County polling sites ahead of May 5 primary

Monroe County election officials say all 28 polling locations for the May 5 primary have been reviewed for ADA (Americans with Disabilities Act) accessibility, with detailed reports now available to voters at each site. That’s according to a news release issued Tuesday (April 28) by Monroe County clerk Nicole Browne.

The reports for each of the 28 sites have been uploaded by The B Square to BloomDocs.org and assigned file names prefixed with “2026 Primary Election Polling Place Accessibility Review.”

The review was prompted by concerns about potential physical barriers at some locations, which could prevent voters with disabilities from exercising their voting rights. Voting locations in Monroe County range from schools to churches to community centers.

A range of issues are flagged in the reports. By way of example, for restrooms the reports identify a consistent set of issues across several polling places: not enough maneuvering space for wheelchairs; missing grab bars; narrow door widths; and lack of knee clearance under sinks. For entrances to buildings, the reports flag doors at some locations that require a lot of force to open, lack automatic openers, or are controlled by key-fob access.

The reports recommend mostly operational, rather than structural fixes. For example, when the nearest bathroom is not ADA accessible, one recommendation is to post signage directing voters to a bathroom that is accessible. If there is no accessible bathroom at a location, the recommendation is to post clear signage saying there is no accessible bathroom and to direct voters with disabilities to the front of the voting line.

At least one operational fix is on its way to becoming a structural remedy. The county-owned North Showers building (Election Central) on Morton Street in downtown Bloomington is serving as the early voting location and will be a polling location for several precincts on Election Day. The entrance door to North Showers was flagged in the report as heavy and hard to open. The recommended remedy, which was implemented by election staff, was to prop the door open. The hardware for an automatic door opener has now been installed, but is waiting for electricity to be run, which means in the meantime it will remain propped open.

The reports were generated with help from volunteer surveyors with the city of Bloomington’s council for community accessibility (CCA), who used BlueDAG software to help document an accessibility assessment about each site for compliance with ADA standards. The reports cover parking areas, paths of travel, entrances, restrooms and other shared spaces.

The effort to document deficiencies and recommendations for remedies using BlueDAG traces at least back to a November 2025. That’s when city of Bloomington ADA coordinator Michael Shermis gave a presentation to the county election board about the city’s use of BlueDAG’s surveying tools in connection with work done by the city’s CCA. The city has contracted with BlueDAG at least since 2024.

At its Dec. 4, 2025 meeting, the Monroe County Board of Commissioners approved a contract with BlueDAG worth $11,988.

Early voting is now underway at Election Central. The reports on each polling location’s accessibility will be available at the location, according to the clerk’s news release. Voters who want to confirm their assigned location for casting a ballot on primary Election Day can use the secretary of state’s online tool.