No accessible bathrooms for disabilities convention at NJ hotel, state says

♿ Non-profit for disability held event at high-end NJ hotel

♿ No bathrooms had wheelchair access, Attorney General says

♿ Many attendees couldn't use the restroom

EDISON — A conference for people living with disabilities had to scramble to find wheelchair-accessible restrooms after the venue failed to provide any, according to authorities.

The Crowne Plaza Edison hotel on Route 27 is accused of violating the state's Law Against Discrimination by not having any accessible public bathrooms for a conference hosted by the Spina Bifida Resource Network.

Spina Bifida is a birth defect that affects the spine and can cause severe disabilities. It can cause loss of feeling in the legs and impact a person's ability to go to the bathroom, according to the Centers for Disease and Prevention website.

The accusations are the result of a preliminary investigation conducted by the Division of Civil Rights within the Attorney General's Office.

“It’s shocking to imagine that a venue hosting a conference for disability advocates would fail to provide an adequate wheelchair-accessible restroom to the attendees. In New Jersey, that’s against the law,” said Attorney General Matthew Platkin.

The Crowne Plaza Edison hotel is a franchised hotel under InterContinental Hotels Group, or IHG Hotels & Resorts, the company said in an email statement to MyCentralJersey.com.

"While the Crowne Plaza Edison is an independently owned and operated franchised hotel, IHG understands that every customer has different needs, and we value making the facilities and amenities within IHG-branded properties available and accessible to all of our guests,” the company said.

Bathrooms did not have wheelchair access, state says

Dozens of people in wheelchairs attended the conference and the hotel was notified in advance that they would be attending, authorities said.

Initially, the hotel instructed the attendees to use a restroom on the first floor. However, the stalls were too narrow for wheelchairs, the OAG said.

Staff then had to race the attendees to bathrooms in private guest rooms on other floors.

The only wheelchair-accessible restroom on the first floor was closed for renovations on the day of the conference, authorities said.

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