'I am isolated and stuck in my home'
Report exposes inaccessibility for those with disabilities
Meagan Leonard
Northern News Services
Friday, July 17, 2015
SOMBA K'E/YELLOWKNIFE
Opening a door, turning on a light or grabbing something from the shelf are subconscious tasks performed every day by the average person.
Lutsel K'e Elder Alfred Able was in Yellowknife visiting family this week and said he was having a hard time accessing some of the businesses downtown with his walker. - Meagan Leonard/NNSL photo |
Little thought is given to the number of stairs leading to a building, the width of a hallway or even which direction a door opens but for someone living with a disability these things can have a huge impact on their ability to simply get through the day.
As society moves toward a more inclusive standpoint, many jurisdictions have taken steps to make their cities more accommodating to those with physical disabilities; however, according to a report released last month by the NWT Disabilities Council, Yellowknife is falling far behind.
The report was part of a project spanning seven months which distributed surveys to those living with a disability, along with parents, caregivers and service providers. Three hundred people responded territory-wide but it is estimated there are more than 3,500 adults in the NWT living with a disability.
"It is important to recognize that a significant portion of the territory's population lives with a disability and the issues raised by respondents likely affect many of the people we were unable to reach," said executive director Denise McKee.
More than one third of the respondents identified having difficulty with physical barriers whether it be at work, school or out in the community. More than 20 per cent were unemployed due to their disability, with 30 per cent commenting their workplace was not equipped to accommodate them and they felt segregated because of their limitations.
One survey respondent wrote, "I cannot think of a single workplace or government building in the NWT that is accessible to persons with disabilities. To hire me would entail a significant outlay to make a workplace accessible."
Another said, "I am isolated and stuck in my home. If I could leave, I could get a very well-paying job and have a life. The minimal services are a Band-Aid at best."
Currently, the GNWT operates under the national building code which does not legislate barrier-free access. Many buildings in Yellowknife have been equipped with ramps and automatic doors but this does not make a building accessible, the report states. For example, the Centre Square Mall has a ramped entrance, but half of the stores can only be reached by a flight of stairs.
"In order to change levels, you have to go outside, and all the way around the building. While for some, this is an OK thing, for others it's a deal breaker for visiting the mall," Jake Flanagan lamented on the Facebook page Inaccessible Yellowknife. "Who wants to go around to the side entrance in -40 ... or risk falling and getting hurt?"
Yellowknife Centre MLA Robert Hawkins worked as a project officer for public works before getting into politics and says making new buildings barrier free comes at little to no extra cost, whereas renovating later can be financially crippling for a business.
"It costs very little from the beginning to make doors wider, lower switches and raise plugs," he explained. "This changes the lives of anyone with a disability and those without probably wouldn't even notice."
In 2005, the Government of Ontario passed its own unique legislation which would require public, private and not-for-profit sectors to be barrier-free by 2021 with the province totally accessible by 2025. Some of these parametres include: elevators in buildings with two or more storeys, fire alarms for the hearing impaired, power door operators, universal washrooms that can accommodate everybody, and adaptable seating spaces.
Hawkins says the GNWT can do a lot better to incorporate accessibility into the housing it builds through NWT Housing Corporation. He said the government's approach needs to be two-fold: creating accessibility requirements for new buildings while providing funding incentives for existing structures.
"Every single one of (the buildings) could have been barrier free," he said. "The government has to start looking at how to work with private industry ... this needs to become a common part of our culture."
Housing Corp. spokesperson Revi Lau-a told Yellowknifer the corporation is including more accessible units into its new buildings to accommodate seniors, but this has not been mandated by the GNWT.
"We have our own policy for persons with disabilities," he explained. "It's a provision that really respects the equal and fair use and enjoyment of a particular dwelling for all individuals, including persons with disabilities and people with mobility problems."
It was not determined by press time how many people have taken advantage of this opportunity or what the interest rates would be.
In 2008, the GNWT released an "action plan for persons with disabilities" with the goal of "removing the barriers facing people with disabilities in the NWT." Seven years later and many of its initiatives read "incomplete" in the updated document.
Frame Lake MLA Wendy Bisaro said the amalgamation of health and social services into one department could be to blame for the action plan falling off the radar as issues such as accessibility were pushed to the back-burner.
"Health is such a huge portfolio that it kind of overshadows everything else," she said. "We need to put more emphasis and awareness on social services ... it hasn't been something we've focused on."
The disabilities council plans to present its recommendations from the report to MLAs this fall, all aimed at increasing accessibility in the territory.
