Ideas and frustrations regarding accessibility in the city were shared during a forum Wednesday at the Orillia Opera House.
Alf Spencer, director of the outreach and strategic initiatives branch with the Accessibility Directorate of Ontario, was the guest speaker during an accessibility awareness and education seminar organized by Orillia’s accessibility advisory committee.
Spencer shared some of the successes of other municipalities — strides in accessibility that might work here, too.
“Although the government has a vision of accessibility, it’s the municipalities that have really taken up the charge,” he told the audience of about 25 people.
There are places where advisory committee members visit elementary schools to explain their disabilities and talk about accessibility issues. Those young students might share that information with the adults in their lives, Spencer said.
There have been accomplishments closer to home, too. A woman in Midland worked with a taxi company to raise enough money to purchase the town’s first accessible cab.
The chairs of the accessibility advisory committees in Innisfil and Wasaga Beach led the charge to have audible pedestrian signals installed in their communities.
“This is the art of the possible,” Spencer said.
He also announced the province will, in the next couple of weeks, launch a project with Simcoe County school boards that will see young students read books about social inclusion.
“Our goal is to take it across Ontario, but we’re doing it here first,” he said.
One of the challenges in terms of accessibility is getting businesses on board. All Ontario businesses will be required to be accessible by 2025, but it is not an inexpensive process.
While the province’s message, “It’s the right thing to do” resonates with many, “if you’re a small-business owner, you’re having a hard time keeping your lights on,” Spencer said.
Anitta Hamming, who is transforming the former BiWay in downtown Orillia into a creative space, attended Wednesday’s seminar because she was “desperately trying to find resources” to help make the building accessible.
“I’m a very proactive person and, as a business owner, I’m trying to find resources to assist me,” she said, noting she wants to be able to hire people with disabilities and she wants to install a lift.
Currently, the cost of making the building accessible is about $75,000.
Ellen Wolper, who owns Paper Kapers, said being at the seminar made her “angry.”
“It’s all I can do to even get the city to fill in the holes in the sidewalk. It’s all I can do to get the city to put sand on the sidewalk,” she said. “It requires guilt. It requires shaming. It’s an awful thing to have to do.”
Lilly Cadeau knows as well as anyone the struggles faced by those with disabilities when they’re visiting businesses.
Cadeau, who chairs the city’s accessibility advisory committee and relies on either a scooter or a walker, said she has not been in about 80 per cent of downtown businesses because of accessibility issues.
One idea that was floated at a committee meeting was StopGap ramps. They can be placed at the entrances of buildings. That idea didn’t gain traction due to concerns about snow removal on the sidewalks. Also, businesses would have to pay for the ramps.
“It’s hard to get businesses to do that,” Cadeau said. “If other places can do it, I don’t see why we can’t.”
She said Spencer’s presentation was helpful and will “give us lots of brainstorming ideas” at the committee level.
One of Spencer’s suggestions was the creation of accessibility awards for those who take steps to make their buildings more welcoming.
“That’s a cool idea,” Cadeau said. “They need some incentive.”
In the end, awareness is key, and that’s why she welcomes people, especially business owners, to attend accessibility advisory committee meetings. They are held the second Tuesday of every month at the Orillia City Centre, starting at 4:30 p.m.
