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Resident calls for better access

One Okotoks resident is upset with what she calls a severe lack of transportation and accessibility for seniors and disabled people in town.

One Okotoks resident is upset with what she calls a severe lack of transportation and accessibility for seniors and disabled people in town.

Delma Schmold, who has multiple sclerosis (MS), moved to Okotoks one year ago and has run into several issues with transportation and public accessibility. Her MS has robbed much of her mobility and Schmold uses a motorized scooter to get around, but it limits her from using local taxi service or entering many establishments in town.

“I’ve only lived here a year and I’ve never been so disappointed in a place in my life,” said Schmold. “I can’t really get anywhere.”

She has signed up for the Town’s community access program, which provides seniors over 60 and those with permanent disabilities access to subsidized taxi service. Currently, the taxis in town cannot accommodate her mobility issues.

There was a taxi in town capable of accommodating handicapped needs, but the vehicle it has broken down and has not yet been repaired.

When she moved here, she said the size of Okotoks’s population gave her the impression there would be access to public transportation, or at least a handibus. She said she was greatly disappointed to find there was nothing in place.

Okotoks community wellness manager Debbie Posey said besides the community access program, the Town also offers seniors its volunteer driver program through the Family Resource Centre.

The program, which consists of 18 drivers who volunteer their own vehicles, gas and time, is extremely busy and increasing every year, she said.

There is nothing dedicated to wheelchair or handicapped access since the taxi service became unavailable, she said.

“At this time, we’re using an external service for wheelchair transportation,” said Posey. “There are still options for people, but it’s not always the best solution.”

The service is not always readily available and can be cost-prohibitive, she said.

She is exploring options for bringing handibus service to town, though she said at this time only two or three residents require regular wheelchair service.

“The ones who need it really, really need it,” said Posey. “I’m working on getting an agreement or funding to get a dedicated handibus, even if it’s just for two or three days per week. But it takes time to get it all in place.”

In the meantime, she said another option is about to come on board – the On-it regional transit pilot, which is set to launch in early September. Every bus in the On-it system will be wheelchair accessible, she said.

For Schmold, the interim solution provides some hope, they she said it’s frustrating to have to potentially wait years to have something local to ease the transportation issue.

“Any form of transportation would help, not just for handicapped people but for everyone,” said Schmold.

But she said fixing the transportation issue is only the beginning. Schmold said she finds it difficult to frequent Okotoks establishments like downtown stores or services with her scooter.

“They don’t have the ramps, and if they do have a ramp to get in they don’t have handicapped buttons at the doors,” she said. “The whole city, except the large box stores and chain stores, anything else in here just doesn’t seem to be easy to get into.”

She said it’s an issue she hopes more people will start paying attention to.

Rob Mueller, permit/inspection/assessment manager for the Town of Okotoks, said barrier-free access is considered under the Alberta building codes act and is a provincial issue.

As of 2014, all new buildings must have barrier-free access, but past building codes did not carry the same mandate, he said. Any accessibility issues would be handled should a building undergo renovation, he said.

“People can apply for relaxation and the Province might grant that based on the nature of the renovation,” said Mueller. “The Province looks at those applications, the Town does not grant relaxations.”

In downtown Okotoks, many businesses have had their buildings grandfathered because they have been restaurants or retail outlets for years, he said.

When renovations occur, the Town looks at the percentage of the buildings included in the reno and may determine it’s necessary for the entire building to be reviewed, which could bring barrier-free accessibility into question, he said.

Even in that case, the owner of the building could still appeal to the Province for a relaxation on the guidelines.

“It’s not black and white, there are always variables,” said Mueller. “There are options for individuals even though we try to enforce it as much as we can.”

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