j

OP SI
TEAK

Boneless.
4 Per. Pkg.

6.35 / kg

FRESH

Beef, Beef & onion
or
Breakfast Sausage

3.29/kg

FRESH B.C.
BLUEBERRIES

Limit 2.

5 lb. Box

B.C. GROWN
EARLY POTATOES

55/kg. Ib

Canada No. 1 Grade

397 g.

FRESH BAKED
FRENCH ana BQ
ea

JULY, 1992

WED | THURS

FRI

SAT

15 | 16

17

Advertised prices in effect at your neighbourhood
Castlegar Saleway siore. Quantity rights reserved
Some items may not be exactly as shown.

AUGUST - FV - @ - @ -
SAFEWAY FRONT LINE BOX SEAT TICKETS
This year see the ford Air Show, like never before! Come out and

enjoy the excitement, @ spectocular vantage point in our Reserved Box Seats

EXPRESS ROUTE TICKET: NOW YOU CAN ORDER BY PHONE:
Receive $37.00 in proc 00} LOWER MAINLAND CALL 662-5055
pre ipiedapiay n&ts | OUT OF TOWN Toll Free 1-800-667-9559

of © $37.00 express route ticket

ABBOTSFORD INTERNATIONAL AIRSHOW
1oo2

00

EACH
Plus GST

PRICE DOES NOT INCLUDE GATE PASS ENTRANCE FEE

Or rin tecpges meni

PROFILE

July 15, 1992

( was supposed to be an

easy, tell-tale feature on

accessibility in downtown
Castlegar, but when Maralee
Tycquet brought out a
wheelchair and told me to get
in, the story became something
much more personal.

Instead of walking next to
Tycquet, who rides a motorized
cart because of Multiple Sclero-
sis, I wheeled in a chair next to
her.

It was only a matter of sec-
onds before I noticed the deep
crevices in the sidewalks, link-
ing the slabs of cement, which

jolted my back as I rolled over
them.

“Usually when someone is in
a wheelchair, they also have a
back problem, so the crevices
cause pain when riding over
them,” said Tycquet

I also noticed that my chair
had a mind of its own— it had a
tendency to roll towards the
edge of the sidewalk. It remind-
ed me of trying to push a shop-
ping cart with a bad front wheel
down a narrow aisle at the gro-
cery store.

Tycquet explained.

“The sidewalk is sloped here,

so your chair is going to roll off
if you're not careful.”

I was careful. Until attempt-
ing to roll down a ramp, off the
sidewalk leading on to
Columbia Avenue. It didn't look
that steep, or rough, but the
chair didn’t come with a set of
shocks, and I wasn't allowed to
move my legs—it ended up
being both.

Crossing the street took on a
whole new meaning.

What was once an everyday,
mindless-look-both-ways jaunt,
now seemed much further, and
was filled with a sense of risk.

LESSON

in

| ACCESSIBILITY |

Unable to go where others can —
in her life—stairs. Although this Cre
with disabilities, construction has st

plans include total accessibility.

Maralee Tycquet points out an obvious restriction
dit Union building disallows easy entry for people
‘arted on a new building, and Maralee hopes the

Would I cross before the light
changed? Could people really
see me? What would happen if I
fell into a pothole? What if
some fool decides to run the
light?

It wasn’t until I was safely
across to the other side and back
up on the sidewalk did I feel a
little more secure, but out of
breath.

For the next hour, I visited
various businesses in downtown
Castlegar. Although none of
these were easy to enter because
of my chair, some were more
difficult

want to feel independent of
everyday assistance, which is
why it is essential that Castlegar
businesses, restaurants, banks,
hotels and shops become readily
accessible to ALL people
Tycquet, a member of the
Multiple Sclerosis Support
Group in Castlegar, has been
living here for just over a year.
In that time, she says that the
group has realized that accessi-
bility in Castlegar could be
worse than it is now—but it also
could be made a lot better too.
“I think part of the reason

curbs.

“The idea is to make down-
town Castlegar more pedestrian-
friendly, this includes people
using wheelchairs, walkers,
crutches etc,” Williams said.

Many of the downtown revi-
talization ideas will be taken to
the Abilities Awareness Adviso-
ry Committee, which was
formed in 1987 as a result of
Rick Hansen's Man in Motion
legacy.

The committee has the over-
all goal of making Castlegar a
better place for people who
have dis-

than oth-
ers. Either
it was
impossible
to manoeu-
vre my
chair due
to the
weight of
the door, or
the door-
way had a
step, which
Made any
access by a

‘The people who own businesses in Castlegar
are very friendly, and they say they mean to do
something about accessibility in their shops—

but they never do.’

— MARALEE TYCQUET
Afflicted with Multiple Sclerosis

abilities.
By keep-
ing a
close-
working
relation-
ship with
city hall,
they have
managed
to make
progress
For
over two
years, the

wheelchair,
with out assistance, virtually
impossible.

I'm happy to say however,
that at every business except
one, there was a friendly face
ready and willing to hold open a
door, or back my chair in so that
I could enter their shop. Once
inside, the majority of shops had
wide aisles, which allowed for
safe and easy access around the
store. Again, every shop except
one (the same one), readily
moved anything which barred or
blocked the aisle or entrance in
which I was moving. They were
courteous, friendly and very
accommodating.

Sometimes this isn’t enough.
People who face disabilities

Defeating the purpose—A few locations around town,
steep grades require a considerable amount of strength

For someone like Maralee, who has Multiple Sclerosis, t

in making an attempt to be accessible, have forgotten that
inorder to get up while in a wheelchair that isn't motorized.

t

he weakening muscles don't allow such strength.

why there isn't a lot of work
done is because many people
with disabilities don't want to
speak out. Sometimes they are
self-conscious and like to keep
themselves hidden,” Tycquet
said.

Narrow aisle in stores, coun-
ters that are too high and an
inadequate supply of disability
parking spaces around town are
three problems which Tycquit
says she would definitely like to
see addressed. In order for these
to happen, business-people have
to do more than just think about
it

“The people who own busi-
nesses in Castlegar are very
friendly, and they say they mean
to do something about accessi-
bility in their own shops—but
they never do.”

That might be true at the pre-
sent time, but with phase one of
the city’s Downtown Revitaliza-
tion Program about to get
underway, accessibility for
those with disabilities is a high
priority.

Gary Williams, city adminis-
trator, says plans for phase one,
which involve Wood Street, 3rd
Street from 11th Avenue to 13th
Avenue, and the 13th Avenue
parking lot, include a number of
changes which focus completely
on accessibility.

As well as four additional
parking spaces, concrete side-
walks will be at/least four feet
wider, linked with an intricate
brick pattern which will have
virtually no grooves that jolt
wheelchairs as they pass by.
Phase one improvements also
include creating drop sidewalks
with a slight grade and smaller

commit-
tee lobbied for an accessible
transportation vehicle and were
successful in receiving a part-
time Handy-Dart accessible
vehicle, which in August 1980,
became full time. The commit-
tee also advised the city of pri-
ority locations for curb cuts and
designated parking spaces. A
future goal is to promote the
acquisition of an accessible taxi
for Castlegar.

Using the committee as an
infrastructure, Castlegar has
hosted four disability related
educational events: The
B.C.C.P.D. Task Force on
Transportation, The Ministry of
Municipal Affairs Recreation
and Culture hearings on recre-
ation for people with disabili-
ties, The Premier's Advisory
Council of Persons with Dis-
abilities Task Team on Commu-
nity Services, and Building
Accessible Communities Work-
shop. c
The Accessibility Council,
like the city, is hoping that busi-
nesses in Castlegar will take
advantage of funds made avail-
able through a grant, provided
by the government to develop
accessible premises.

“The city can do only so
much with downtown revitaliza-
tion, when it comes to individu-
al businesses, a grant is
available to owners to make
their shops more accessible.
We'd like to see them use it,”
Williams said.

By utilizing the grant and
creating a more accessible busi-
ness, not only will people like
Maralee Tyquet be shopping
more often, but Castlegar busi-
nesses will be better for it

Story and photos
by Sharlene Imhoff