A plan to remove barriers to disabled residents was supported Monday night by the Clovis City Council, but with apologies to the city's disabled community.
Council members asked that the city's Americans With Disabilities Act efforts be accelerated to improve disabled accessibility in Clovis.The plan approved Monday night is designed to remove those barriers little by little based on available money, with priority given to locations most often used by people with disabilities such as the city's senior center, recreation center, City Hall and police and fire headquarters.The ADA went into effect for U.S. cities 16 years ago and a plan to remove barriers was required 13 years ago.But Clovis has been using an informal process to address issues for members of the disabled community, said John Holt, Clovis city clerk and ADA coordinator.When Ray Wilder, a Clovis man who is blind, needed help identifying transit stops, he said he didn't know whom to call. Once he found out, the city quickly finished the job."You have to know where to go before you can get help," Wilder said Monday night, offering to assist the city. "I would hope the city can make the process a little easier for the handicapped."Elaine Lake, a double amputee confined to a wheelchair for the past 31/2 years, said the city should already comply with ADA laws. "If the city started in 1992, it would be in compliance right now," she told the council. She said violations are not limited to older buildings. According to a survey prepared for the city last year, 133 pages of ADA issues need to be addressed at the Clovis police and fire headquarters, she said.A second phase of the survey will be introduced to the council next spring and include the accessibility of streets, roads and walkways for the disabled.Mayor Bob Whalen admitted the city's record is "embarrassing" and Council Member Lynne Ashbeck said the city will need to accelerate the pace of improvements.Added Council Member Jose Flores: "We do owe an apology to citizens who have disabilities."Holt said the improvements will take many years and likely cost millions of dollars.Under the plan, the city's ADA committee will present a budget for accessibility improvements to the council each year and update the city's progress.