The Town of Barrhead and Main Street businesses need work to become accessible to all residents.
But the good news is that many accessibility issues can be resolved, at least temporarily, without having to break the bank.
That is what Kelly Kalmbach and Coun. Dausen Kluin said during an Oct. 9 presentation to Town of Barrhead councillors.
In the spring, Kalmbach, Kluin and Carolyn Wierenga embarked on a walking tour of Main Street to see how accessible businesses were for residents who suffered from some sort of physical disability.
Wierenga, who is from Neerlandia, avoids shopping in Barrhead because it is too difficult for her to access the local businesses.
Wierenga is mobility challenged and uses a powered wheelchair to get around.
“She [Wierenga] challenged me on Facebook to walk a day in her shoes,” Kalmbach said.
She then extended an invitation to Kluin, who also is mobility challenged, uses a walker due to cerebral palsy.
“We were looking at mostly at accessibility — that is, how easy it was for a person with mobility challenges to get into a business through its front entrance, whether you are in a wheelchair, using a walker, an elderly person using a cane, or a mother pushing a stroller,” she said. The results for someone that doesn’t suffer from a mobility issue was eye-opening.
“Although as someone who had my own salon, our downtown businesses were difficult to access I didn’t realize just how difficult.”
The tour started at the Freson Bros. parking lot, as Wierenga finds it is easier for her to get out of her van because of the larger parking spots.
The first business they entered was one with double doors, one of which was open and the other one closed and locked.
“Carolyn had no trouble walking through, but Dausen got stuck and it took some effort for him to maneuver, which he was able to, but not everyone would have been able to do,” Kalmbach said.
As they continued, the trio found doors to be a major obstacle at many businesses, with width and lack of an automatic door button being the largest obstacles. Of the businesses they visited, with the exception of the banks, only one had an automatic door button on the outside, but there wasn’t one on the inside.
When they inquired why the store owner decided only to install the button on the outside of the building, he said cost was a major factor.
The other issue that both Kluin and Wierenga had navigating were the lips of doorways and sidewalks, as in some cases these mini-curbs were up to two or three inches in height. In many cases, ground settling, or simple deterioration over time caused these lips.
Not only do these lips make it difficult for people in wheelchairs and walkers but they also pose a potential tripping hazard, as is the metal decking that goes across one sidewalk.
“Sometimes I tend to drag my feet when I walk, and if you aren’t paying attention, it is easy to get tripped up,” Kluin said.
For the businesses that had ramps, most either had an incline that was too steep, or too narrow and did not have a safety railing.
“And when you got to the top of the ramps, the doors didn’t have push buttons, which means people in wheelchairs and walkers would have to wait until someone else entered the business or they were spotted waiting,” Kalmbach said. “However Carolyn, doesn’t usually have to wait too long, she carries a cane with her and uses it to knock on the doors.”
The trio also noted that the controlled pedestrian crosswalks are not equipped with an audio signal, which is an issue for those who are vision-impaired. They also noted the amount of time the traffic lights allow for pedestrian crossing isn’t long enough for those with mobility challenges.
As for potential solutions, Kluin suggested where businesses don’t have an automatic door button, a doorbell could be installed at a fraction of the price, which patrons could use to alert staff.
To solve the issue of door lips businesses could use small portable ramps that are available free of charge through the StopGap Foundation, a Toronto non-profit organization.
“To get one of these ramps built it costs anywhere between $150 to $300, plus shipping,” he said.
However, Kluin said StopGap is willing to provide the plans for the ramp and from there it would only be a matter of starting a community campaign to raise funds for materials and volunteers to build them.
“[StopGap information director] suggested local businesses could supply the materials while local schools, as part of community engagement, could be tasked to build the ramps. This way it becomes a true community partnership where everyone is involved,” he said.
“I know it isn’t a permanent solution, but it is a step in the right direction for making businesses more accessible.”
Former school resource officer Const. Robert Hynes did something similar when he asked Barrhead Composite High School’s metal work department to build a number of Buddy Benches for area elementary schools.
The Buddy Bench is an ordinary bench , but when placed in a schoolyard, has special properties. When a student who doesn’t have anyone to spend their break with sits on the bench, it attracts the attention of other students who approach the student and ask them to join their group.
Coun. Ty Assaf asked if they could access any government grants.
Kluin said he didn’t know, but has asked Alberta Ministry of Labour workplace consultant Kristy Tuts for help in finding potential grants, but hasn’t received a reply.
“The last time I checked there were a couple, but they were very hard to get,” he said.
