Greg Abbott’s new residence awaits him and his family.
It’s a nice place, rather old, but quite elegant. It needs a little fixing up.
Abbott takes office in January as Texas’s next governor and the 134-year-old house into which he and his family will live never has hadĀ resident quite like the governor-elect. He’s been confined to a wheelchair ever since he was paralyzed in a freak accident in Houston; a tree fell on him while he was jogging, breaking his back.
http://www.texastribune.org/2014/12/05/governors-mansion-tweaked-abbott/
The Governor’s Mansion was updated after an arsonist torched the place in 2008 with a Molotov cocktail. More work needs to be done, as there need to be upgrades to the governor’s office in the Capitol Building across the street from the residence.
There’s a certain slight touch of irony, of course, inĀ the expense the state is incurring to accommodate the governor.
The state must comply with a federal law that requires accessibility for people with disabilities. The Americans with Disabilities Act was enacted in 1991 during the George H.W. Bush administration. It’s a wonderful piece of legislation that recognizes the needs of those who are confined to wheelchairs, or who have difficulty accessing public facilities.
Why the touch of irony? Texas is angry at the federal government these days. Outgoing Gov. Rick Perry has made quite a lot of noise railing, ranting and raving about federal “overreach.” The new governor has just filed a lawsuit against the Obama administration over its handling of immigration policy.
The ADA doesn’t fall into the category of laws that Texas officials want to challenge. It’s there for a good reason: to help disabled Americans gain the access they deserve to public buildings.
Good luck with the repairs, Gov. Abbott.