Category Archives: Accessibility

Proposed Hotel – From An Accessibility Perspective

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How accessible is a hotel that provides no accessible parking and stairs?

Last fall I asked what accessibility guidelines the town provides to developers? who ensures accessibility is included in the site plan review? 

Deputy CAO Osborne wrote, in part, that Administration reviews site plans and drawings for compliance with legislative requirements.

While I awaited administration’s answer, I emailed Architectural Design Associates (ADA) about the proposed hotel: one of the pictures depicts stairs at the rear entrance to the building. how accessible will the stairs be? also, how many accessible units are proposed?

I followed up with ADA but still received no response.

Following the mandatory April 11, 2023 4:30 pm meeting, I have more questions about public safety and accessibility:

  • How will council be satisfied that undue traffic hazards would not arise?
  • Did Windsor Police Service provide a ‘fulsome’ report? 
  • Was public safety regarding the rental of electric scooters considered? 
  • Were municipalities like Toronto and Paris that banned electric scooters compared? 
  • Were statistics regarding the number of injuries and deaths from electric scooters considered? 
  • How will bike rentals be accessible if they are located downstairs?
  • How will people using mobility devices access the restaurant at the back of the building if stairs pose a barrier? 
  • How would a person using a mobility device exit through the back stairs in an emergency?
  • How is the restaurant accessible if people with hidden disabilities have to travel to the front building entrance?
  • How will ‘fully accessible’ be interpreted, by whom and by what standards? 
  • If the hotel has two accessible rooms, where will people with disabilities park? 
  • Has walking distance from available parking for persons with various types of disabilities been considered?
  • If streets are not closed, and a person with a disability is dropped off in front of the hotel, will curb cuts be installed to enable access by persons with disabilities who use wheeled assistive devices? 
  • Does the magnitude of the development warrant the provision of parking spaces for persons with disabilities?
  • Has public health and safety concerns, as mentioned in the Provincial Policy Statement, been addressed? 
  • Has ‘improving accessibility for persons with disabilities and older persons by addressing land use barriers which restrict their full participation in society’ as mentioned in the Provincial Policy Statement been considered?
  • As mentioned in the Official Plan, in reviewing development applications, has serious consideration been given to the creation of a barrier free environment?
  • Also as mentioned in the Official Plan, has the town encouraged developers to provide barrier free developments?
  • Do Zoning By-law parking requirements for 1.25 spaces per unit of a hotel conflict with the Official Plan?

Councillor Crain’s Flip Flop On Open Air Barriers

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@LindenCrain, remember this campaign question? Will you remove barriers during Open Air weekends that block people with disabilities from driving to the bank, local stores, bars, and generally driving through town?

Crain’s answer: “Yes. It is important that all members of the community can experience Open Air.”

Well now I can’t.

Remember these questions?

how will you fulfill the obligation to remove barriers?

Crain’s answers, in part:

  • Follow regulations outlined in the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act. 
  • Always remain available to address concerns any resident faces in the Town of Amherstburg.
  • Work closely with Town Administration to establish procedures and measures that ensure those with disabilities have the opportunity to experience all our community has to offer.

Councillor Crain On Barriers, Accessibility And How Can He Improve?

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On October 26, I congratulated newly elected council members of council and offered kudos to councillors Pouget and Courtney; I did not encounter any barriers during their campaigns to represent their community.

I asked the remaining five three questions.

On December 9, I sent a reminder that the questions were not answered. Councillor Crain then answered, below, and also asked, Thank you for the questions. Would you be able to share how I created barriers for residents with disabilities throughout my campaign?

the burg watch: December 11, i already did in emails.

Crain: Can you please resend them?

the burg watch: no.

Crain: That’s unfortunate. I guess I won’t be able to learn more about how I can improve…

the burg watch: it’s unfortunate that you didn’t take note of my previous emails or read my blog.

Crain’s answers:

of the accessibility information the town provided to you for your campaign, which did you read?

I read all election material provided by the Town throughout my campaign, including any information pertaining to the Municipal Elections Act, 1996, the Ontarians with Disabilities Act, 2001, and the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act, 2005.

what trainings have you participated in for accessibility legislation, for example, as an employee, volunteer, etc.?

Both the Town of Amherstburg and the County of Essex members of Council have received training on accessibility. I have also been advised that Administration will be doing a special session on accessibility in the first quarter of 2023.

how will you fulfill the obligation to remove barriers?

  • Continue an open dialogue with the Town’s Accessibility Advisory Committee.
  • Follow regulations outlined in the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act. 
  • Always remain available to address concerns any resident faces in the Town of Amherstburg.
  • Work closely with Town Administration to establish procedures and measures that ensure those with disabilities have the opportunity to experience all our community has to offer.

Premier Ford and His Cabinet Have Failed 2.9 Million Ontarians with Disabilities, According to Damning Report Prepared by a Person the Ford Government Picked to Assess Its Performance on tearing Down Disability Barriers

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ACCESSIBILITY FOR ONTARIANS WITH DISABILITIES ACT ALLIANCE

NEWS RELEASE – FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

March 10, 2023 Toronto: The Ontario Government, including the Premier and his Cabinet, have utterly failed 2.9 million Ontarians with disabilities, according to a blistering new official report prepared by a person that the Ford Government hand-picked to review the state of accessibility for people with disabilities in Ontario. Yesterday, the interim report of the Fourth Independent Review of the Government’s implementation of the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act was released. Last year, the Ford Government appointed Rich Donovan to prepare that report.

After consulting with the disability community, Mr. Donovan found:

“Despite 17 years since the AODA has come into force, People with Disabilities (PWD) still consistently face barriers in their everyday experiences, from navigating city streets, to applying for jobs, to accessing public transit and government services.”.

This has led to “frustration, anger, resignation, and disappointment with the state of accessibility in Ontario.”

He concluded:

“The current experience for many people with disabilities in Ontario is poor. This stems from design flaws in services, products, technology, buildings, infrastructure, careers, processes, and human imagination.”

This new Donovan report amplifies blistering findings delivered to the Ford Government over four years ago by former Lieutenant Governor David Onley in his 3rd Independent Review of the AODA’s implementation. The crowning achievement of David Onley’s legacy for Ontarians, the 2019 Onley Report found that Ontario is full of “soul-crushing barriers” hurting people with disabilities. David Onley called on Premier Ford to take bold new action. In the four years since then, The Ford Government failed to implement the Onley Report’s core recommendations.

The new Donovan report described the failed implementation of the AODA over 17 years as “a series of failures and missed opportunities”. Mr. Donovan found it “utterly shocking” that the Ontario Premier and Cabinet have no plan to achieve an accessible Ontario for people with disabilities. His report found that both the Government and private sector organizations “have not prioritized disability in their operations.”

Mr. Donovan concluded that “…there is an urgent need for action.” His report called for accessibility for people with disabilities urgently to be made a greater priority:

“Boards of Directors, business owners and the Premier of Ontario must urgently demand better experiences for Ontario’s people with disabilities.”

Mr. Donovan assessed that the Ontario Government needs:

“an urgent and material adjustment in strategy and output.”

The Donovan report concluded that among disadvantaged groups in society, no others experience the same severity of exclusion:

“No other demographic group faces these kinds of negative experiences, barriers, and outright discrimination without public outcry, much less one that represents nearly a quarter of the population.”

The report determined that there has been a failure of needed leadership on accessibility:

“It is the assessment of the 4th Reviewer that leadership on accessibility – and the AODA – has been absent for 17 years. Without leadership, progress on this file is impossible.”

The Donovan report identified the Government of Ontario and all political parties as sharing responsibility:

“It is the obligation of the government of the day to serve the population. It has failed to do so for 22% of that population. Opposition parties have failed to hold governments of the day accountable for this lack of service. These failures are shared by all of Ontario’s political parties.”

Mr. Donovan determined that the failure to make more progress on accessibility was also due in no small part to the lack of meaningful enforcement of the AODA:

“Alongside standards is a critical lack of enforcement or incentives to comply with the AODA or improve accessibility more generally.”

The Donovan Report  attributes some of the responsibility for the lack of leadership to the media’s failure to give more coverage to accessibility problems:

“A key reason for the lack of leadership on accessibility is there has been little perceived incentive for potential leaders to prioritize it. Lacking “breaking news” stories, accessibility rarely enters the media cycle in a sustained way. This has helped keep accessibility off the social or political agenda in Ontario.

The absence of disability in the news cycle reflects a failure of Ontario and Canada’s major media outlets.”

Ultimately the Donovan Independent Review concluded:

“…the Premier of Ontario and his Cabinet have yet to meet the basic needs of a group of people totaling over one fifth of its population.”

In the bluntest statement of any of the four Independent Reviews that have been conducted since the AODA was passed in 2005, the Donovan report pointedly asked:

“Mr. Premier, do you care?”

“Premier Ford must sit up and listen to the damning findings about his Government that were made by the very person his Government hand-picked to review the Government’s efforts on accessibility for Ontarians with disabilities,” said David Lepofsky, chair of the non-partisan AODA Alliance, that leads the grass roots campaign for accessibility for Ontarians with disabilities. “We have been raising the same concerns for years, without success. Premier Ford has refused every request to meet with us, and his Accessibility Minister now does not even answer requests to meet.”

The AODA Alliance Shares Mr. Donovan’s conclusion that these failures are caused by a lack of Government leadership, inadequate attention from all political parties, and the Government’s failure to effectively enforce the AODA. We disagree with Mr. Donovan’s suggestion that these failures are attributable to a failure to collect more data, or with using accessibility standards as a core tool to promote accessibility for people with disabilities. The AODA Alliance will make public a detailed response to the Donovan Independent Review regarding those issues in the next weeks. That disagreement does not derogate from our strong endorsement of the Donovan Report’s other findings, as quoted here.

Contact: AODA Alliance Chair David Lepofsky, aodafeedback@gmail.com

Twitter: @aodaalliance

For more background:

The AODA Alliance’s February 6, 2023 brief to the Rich Donovan AODA Independent Review.

The AODA Alliance website which documents the non-partisan campaign since 2005 to get the Ontario Government to effectively implement the AODA

Text of the March 9, 2023 interim report of the Rich Donovan 4th Independent Review of the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act.

Richard Peddie Needs Open Air

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Listen to Richard Peddie say he needs open air on am800 interview January 19, 2023; read text below at the end of the post.

Richard Peddie, a February 21 council meeting delegate, will once again voice his support for Open Air, also known as closed streets. The twist this time is that his presentation states a park in the middle of our town.

One of his pictures clearly illustrates the barriers on the sidewalk and in the streets where it would be difficult for people using mobility devices or who rely on visual cues for navigation.

I have raised awareness about barriers that exclude people with disabilities many times over decades and, during this past election campaign, wrote about encountering ableism.

This new council has to decide between closing a publicly funded highway requested by for profit businesses or adhering to public policy to provide for equal rights and opportunities without discrimination that is contrary to law?

Human Rights Code PREAMBLE

Whereas recognition of the inherent dignity and the equal and inalienable rights of all members of the human family is the foundation of freedom, justice and peace in the world and is in accord with the Universal Declaration of Human Rights as proclaimed by the United Nations;

And Whereas it is public policy in Ontario to recognize the dignity and worth of every person and to provide for equal rights and opportunities without discrimination that is contrary to law, and having as its aim the creation of a climate of understanding and mutual respect for the dignity and worth of each person so that each person feels a part of the community and able to contribute fully to the development and well-being of the community and the Province;

And Whereas these principles have been confirmed in Ontario by a number of enactments of the Legislature and it is desirable to revise and extend the protection of human rights in Ontario;

Text of Richard Peddie interview:

but we do need the help of town. I mean, it’s gonna be interesting. We have a new council, how will they rule on Open Air, open air is absolutely critical of these all new shops absolutely critical. And you know what it’s going to really it’ll be one of the factors on whether we open a hotel. I need open air because the hotel hotels are tough. I mean, it’s no coincidence there are none in Amherstburg, because there’s it’s tough to build them and, you know, when we make our decision on the hotel and we hope to soon, how Council reacts to how they’re supporting local business will be a big factor.

Copyright – this information is protected by Canada’s Copyright Act. Request written permission from the burg watch at gmail dot com.

OPP Answers Questions

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I asked the OPP a few questions following Deputy Mayor Gibb’s February 8 comments about the OPP.

question 1: have all the essex county detachments undertaken community/satisfaction surveys?

answer: OPP have just recently begun interviewing for the 2023 West Region Detachments Community Satisfaction Survey (CSS), which includes surveying respondents in the Essex Detachment area.  An Essex Detachment-specific results report will be created once data collection is completed and there has been an opportunity to analyze the data/draft the report.  I should be able to receive the West Region report by Summertime (pending how long the approval process takes once the results are analyzed and the reports are drafted). Prior to this, the last time we did a survey in Essex Detachment would have been in 2017.

question 2: would you provide me with the cost of OPP policing to these local communities?

question 3: would you provide me with an estimate of the timeline for an OPP costing to the town of amherstburg?

answer: In reference to the Billing Model and Costing, it may be best for you to view the following links:

Ontario Provincial Police – Billing Model (opp.ca)

Ontario Provincial Police – Contract Proposals and Amalgamations (opp.ca)

There is a manual for the contract proposal process with the below timeline in it, along with other information that will assist you.

OPP AMALGAMATION PROCESS

Comparing Amherstburg To Other Municipalities: ‘Missed opportunities’: Saanich park renovation excludes people with disabilities: advocate

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Does this sound familiar?

A park renovation has one Saanich mother frustrated about a lack of accessibility for people with disabilities in design processes for public amenities.

Read the full Vancouver island Free Daily article.

Why Does Committee Vacancy Ad Not Mirror Provincial Legislation?

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For decades, since the Ontarians with Disabilities Act 2001 and the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act 2005, a majority of the members of the committee shall be persons with disabilities.

The River Town Times ad states, A majority of the members of the committee shall be persons with disabilities or caregivers of persons with disabilities. Caregivers cannot be substituted.

River Town Times ad committee vacancies

Accessibility Advisory Committee Composition

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I’ve emailed members of council my concern regarding the call for applications, specifically the composition of the Accessibility Advisory Committee. It may be confusing, as it has been in the past, given the information on the town’s site or received by email.

Town committee members’ Applications will be accepted until January 9, 2023 at 4:30 p.m.

The town’s website states, ‘Application forms are available at Town Hall, 271 Sandwich Street South or on the Town website at www.amherstburg.ca.’

the burg watch note: the link is to the town’s home page, not specifically to the forms.

There are links to:

The completed printable form is to be submitted with a resume and notes ‘Each Committee may have additional criteria for eligibility – Refer to Terms of Reference.’

the burg watch note: the Terms of Reference is not attached to the printable form.

The electronic form allows a resume to be uploaded and notes, ‘Each Committee may have additional criteria for eligibility – Refer to Terms of Reference.’

the burg watch note: there is no link to the Terms of Reference from the Vacancies page or the electronic form.

I searched and located the Local Boards/Committees ~ Terms of Reference and it stipulates:

‘The Amherstburg Accessibility Advisory Committee must be made up of 50% or more of members affected by a disability, as per AODA.’ page 3

‘The AODA requires that not less than 50 percent of this Committee’s members be persons with disabilities or such members as Council deems appropriate.’ page 16

The call for applications section states, A majority of the members of the committee shall be persons with disabilities or caregivers of persons with disabilities. 

The Accessibility Advisory Committee section of the town’s site states, ‘The Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act requires that a majority of the Committee’s members be persons with disabilities.’

A 2020 inquiry about the total number of members of the Amherstburg Accessibility Advisory Committee and the number of members that are people with disabilities ended with a percentage of people.

Answer:  link to the composition and 75% of the committees’ membership are affected by disabilities.

i did not inquire about the number of members affected by disabilities. i requested ‘the number of committee members that are people with disabilities.’

Answer: 63% of the committee are people with disabilities.

i would like the NUMBER of people with disabilities as requested, not the percentage.

The Meaning of Ableism

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if you’re a regular reader, you know that I persistently advocate for accessibility at every opportunity, despite the pushback, defiance, ignorance, and attitudinal barriers.

During the 2022 municipal election, some statements were concerning because of misinformation. I wondered, do people realize their positions are based on ableism?

An excellent article by Andrew Pulrang, Contributor, Forbes: Words Matter, And It’s Time To Explore The Meaning Of “Ableism.”