Council, mayor experience disabilities with wheelchair, vision impairment goggles

Jul. 24--Spending 24 hours in a wheelchair or a half hour using goggles that simulate different vision impairments made an impression on city leaders this week.

The vision impairment glasses were given to members of the city council Monday by Eric Vetter one of the board members on the Mayor's Advisory Committee for People with Disabilities. Vetter is no stranger for advocating for people with disabilities. He's been in a wheelchair ever since he was injured in an accident 27 years ago. Monday was also the evening Mayor Travis Schaunaman first sat in the wheelchair that he would use for the next 24 hours.

Both exercises were done as a way to bring awareness to the Americans with Disabilities Act. This year is the 30th Anniversary of the act which prohibits discrimination against people with disabilities in employment, transportation, public accommodations, commercial facilities, telecommunications and state and local government services.

The act was signed into law July 26, 1990 by President George H.W. Bush. Vetter said he was 16 at the time, and didn't care much about the act at the time, but, he said, it's crazy how it has affected him.

In a phone interview Thursday, Schaunaman said using a wheelchair for a day gave him a new perspective on his daily activities Monday evening and during the day Tuesday.

"I would say that it's made me more aware of all the things I'm able to take for granted," Schaunaman said.

Schaunaman is owner of Production Monkeys. It's a short distance from city hall and his home. But, although his business is all one floor, he became keenly aware of the few steps there are inside. Using the bathroom also meant circumventing those steps by going outside and around the building.

Because of those steps, he limited his movements around the office, which, in turn gave him the feeling of being more confined, but he did venture out and do all his normal daily tasks like evening chores at home, dropping off his two kids at day care and going to meetings at city hall.

In the end, he said, he only stood once -- to get his two-year-old strapped into the car seat, which, he said, is a challenge any day of the week.

Vetter said he's not surprised the experience was eye opening for Schaunaman, and that's the point.

Schaunaman said he now knows the challenge of overcoming even a small step on the floor. There's a four-inch height difference between the main floor in the city council chamber and the area where the council sits. Sitting in that wheelchair, he said, he couldn't maneuver the chair up. Vetter said he was able to show Schaunaman it could be done, but, he said, it takes practice to master that skill. Fortunately, Schaunaman said, there was a more accessible way to his council seat.

Monday evening, Vetter showed Schaunaman how he loads his wheelchair after sliding into the front seat of the car. First, he removes each of the wheels by pushing a button on the hub of each wheel, then, he folds the back down and lifts the middle section into his car. He's done in less than a minute.

That task also came with trial and error, Vetter said, recalling a couple times where he didn't set the brakes and the wheelchair rolled away before he could catch it. It's times like those, he said, where he's had help from others.

Goggles

The visual impairments varied with the goggles worn by the city council, but each had a similar reaction. Some goggles depicted small areas of clarity surrounded by darkness or blurred vision. Others blacked out part or most of a person's point of view.

Councilmen Mark Remily and Clint Rux both struggled to see during Monday's meeting, both agreed briefly using the goggles was difficult, but made an impression.

"It opens your eyes to the difficulties people go through," Councilman Josh Rife said. Rife wore glasses depicting cataracts, which showed a brownish orange tint with small points of clarity.

Councilman Alan Johnson wore goggles depicting retinitis pigmentosa. The condition narrows a person's field of vision to two clear spots in the center. He could read if he held his papers in front of his face, but lost his peripheral vision, which meant swiveling his entire body, for instance, to find the flag for the Pledge of Allegiance at the beginning of the meeting.

Councilman Justin Reinbold said Monday there were sections of his goggles depicting detached retina that were clear, but other areas of darkness.

"If you could look through a zebra's skin, that's what it would be like," Reinbold said.

Councilman Dave Lunzman said using the goggles was difficult, but provided a new perspective showing what others go through.

"It gives you a different appreciation for what other people go through every day," Lunzman said by phone Wednesday.

The advisory committee

As a committee the mayor's advisory committee looks at things that need improving around the city. Vetter said, one of those area was with sidewalk accessibility.

At Monday's council meeting, Vetter commended the city for the work it's done so far in making sidewalks more accessible by replacing curbs with accessible ramps.

According to American News archives, that effort started in 2008 when the city had 650 sidewalk quadrants, or corners, that were non-compliant. That means they didn't have curb cuts with ramps for accessibility.

At a recent city council meeting, Public Works Director Robin Bobzien said once all the non-compliant quadrants are fixed, he said, the next step is addressing the partially compliant corners.

Vetter said that progress is huge.

"Just knowing I'm able to go out and get up onto sidewalks makes life easier for me and everyone else in Aberdeen," he said.

As a Realtor, accessibility to the sidewalk and the houses he shows is huge. If he pulls up to a house and there isn't immediate access in the, he's looking for the nearest driveway.

As a committee, he said, their role is to be there to answer questions from businesses interested in making their place more accessible.

Vetter said businesses can be more accessible by installing a button that opens the door for the customer, or, alternatively, a doorbell so customers having difficulty getting inside can ring for help.

Simple enhancements also include expanding the space between racks to make it easier for wheelchair access or thinking about product placement from the perspective of someone in a wheelchair.

Sometimes those changes come with a suggestion, Vetter said. For example, he attended the open house for the new C-Express station when it opened on Sixth Avenue Southeast and noticed the height of the vacuum handles. He suggested dropping one down a bit, and the owner did just that. Now it provides better accessibility not only for a person in a wheelchair, but others who may not find it easy to reach the higher handles.

At the end of the day, Vetter said, he wants people to remember the importance of the Americans with Disabilities Act.

"It allows everybody to be able to just live life," he said. "That's a huge thing. We hope the awareness we bring makes people look at their business and make it more accessible."

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