Episode 51: Meet Lenny Massotti, PE, ADAC | Advancing Accessibility Through ADA Support Services

In the latest episode of the Meet JMT podcast, we sit down with Lenny Massotti, PE, ADAC, senior project manager in our Dover, Delaware office and leader of JMT's ADA Support Services team. 

Lenny discusses how his team helps clients improve accessibility and ADA compliance through program evaluations, transition planning, and accommodation support. He also shares insights from a landmark project that advanced pedestrian accessibility standards and strengthened ADA implementation across transportation projects in Delaware. 

Drawing from both his professional expertise and personal experiences with late-onset neurological changes and intermittent mobility limitations, Lenny offers valuable perspective on the importance of accessibility and the real-world impact of inclusive planning and design. 

Learn more about Lenny's career journey, the evolving landscape of accessibility, and how thoughtful implementation can help create more inclusive communities.

Transcript

Would you mind telling our listeners about yourself including your role at JMT, and some of your inspirations to pursue your career?

I'm a senior project manager and run a small team from the Dover, Delaware, satellite office. We provide policy and process support to clients for regulatory matters. Our primary focus is on the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) Program Access: Accommodation requests, ADA complaints, self-evaluation reviews, and transition planning. We have also supported permitting process creation and regulations implementation for renewable energy in public right of way and small wireless (5G) in the public ROW.

As a student I found inspiration in the impact that engineers and architects can make on society over the course of a career. In practice as a professional engineer, I found that the impacts that are possible can be propelled to success or hindered from implementation on the basis of effective policy and process implementation. The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) became one of the most challenging and least supported implementation challenges that I grappled with as a young engineer and later as a member of a regulatory agency.

What’s been one of the most rewarding or significant projects that you’ve worked on, and how has that impacted you, JMT, or the AEC industry?

When I joined JMT in 2016, it was expressly because there was an opportunity to rewrite a working copy of one of our DOT clients' Pedestrian Accessibility Standards. That was the compelling opportunity that attracted me to join JMT, along with the goal of making a lasting impact that might help the ADA become more broadly understood in practical application to capital projects across Delaware. Our hope is to grow JMT's ability to extend ADA support services across the JMT footprint to new and existing clients. Our role with that 1 manual rewrite opened doors to other ADA support roles with that client and opportunities to work with other municipal clients on ADA and regulatory implementation challenges. The lack of ADA awareness about the Civil Rights underpinnings of the ADA and pocketed ADA design expertise across our industry motivated me to get certified as an ADA Coordinator (ADAC) and petition senior management to expand ADA support services beyond the MD/DE area. 

Are there any hobbies or interests outside of work that you feel have influenced your professional journey?

My personal experiences as a person with late-onset neurological changes and intermittent physical limitations, including periods of relying on mobility assistive devices and other ADA accommodation techniques to adapt to changing abilities, have reinforced my passion to help clients digest and support their accessibility programs and compliance efforts.

Do you have any words of inspiration that you would like to share with our listeners? 

I’m really excited about the direction JMT is heading and all the initiatives underway. As the roster of core JMT services and business lines continues to be developed and broadened, I’m looking forward to seeing how our ADA Support Services team can contribute in meaningful ways, support our clients in new ways, and help drive long-term growth across the organization. 

Over the last 10 years with JMT, I have found tremendous support and encouragement in my personal and professional journey, with the ADA becoming a more meaningful part of what I find rewarding about our ability to "Do Good ... for Greatness Sake!" 

Our ADA Support Services Team is available to assist with a broad range of ADA-related needs, from policy implementation to technical documentation of constraints and steps taken to advance accessibility even when technical infeasibility may limit what is possible. Feel free to contact Joshua Johnson or Lenny Massotti for scoping support suggestions or technical insights on challenging ADA topics.