Why this is important. Fourteen percent of Canadians are people with disabilities, and as Saint John’s population continues to age that number will only increase. Ensuring that people with disabilities have equal access to living, working and playing in our community should be automatic.
What ZoneSJ gets right. ZoneSJ includes standards for accessible parking spaces in a variety of development forms.
Issues and opportunities. There are no universal accessibility standards in ZoneSJ other than the parking space requirements. Public safety issues such as priority siting for pedestrian crossings and chirping signals for high volume commercial developments are an easy example of Universal Design practices that are hardly new in urban planning. Yet ZoneSJ seems to completely ignore this segment of our population and does not include any of these established development standards.
Cheat sheet for your feedback. If you want to provide feedback on this issue, feel free to use or edit the statements below:
Simple version
The elderly and people with disabilities deserve equal access to our city. Please establish accessibility standards in ZoneSJ that ensure this growing segment of our population is barrier-free.
More detailed version
- Consult with the Saint John Ability Advisory Committee and the Premiers Council on the Status of Disabled Persons to develop standards for universal accessibility (disability accommodation) devices to improve public safety (for example, chirping signals at high-volume pedestrian crossings).
- Explore Universal Design practices and incorporate standards into ZoneSJ to accommodate the elderly, people with disabilities, and others.
The deadline for your feedback to the City on ZoneSJ is Friday November 29th. Submit your input to (via webform, or in writing to planning@saintjohn.ca). And copy your councillors.