The Roving Activist’s Blog

There will be a public hearing here in Rochester on November 14, 2007, called “Revitalizing Urban Communities”. It is being put on by state Senators, Liz Krueger and Antoine Thompson, and will explore ways of revitalizing urban communities. I will be attending and testifying at the hearing. Here is my testimony:

Revitalizing Communities

People with disabilities have much to offer to the communities in which we live. However, we face many challenges; the most striking of which is the lack of affordable, accessible, and integrated housing. People with disabilities are literally facing a housing crisis in this state!

The lack of affordable, accessible, and integrated housing forces people with disabilities into segregated and often institutionalized settings. Those who are already in an institution find it almost impossible to get out when the deposit and rent for an apartment are more than their Social Security checks. 

Priced Out in 2006 a report published by the Technical Assistance Collaborative (TAC) found that the national average monthly income for a person who relied on SSI for their sole source of income was only $632. The average price of a one-bedroom apartment was $715 and a studio efficiency apartment was $633. These numbers obviously do not add up. 

Home ownership, for those who can afford it, is practically out of the question. This is because the vast majority of homes are inaccessible to people with mobility impairments.

This is unfortunate because people with disabilities can be a part of the revitalization of a community. We care about the neighborhoods in which we live. We shop, work, volunteer, and are an integral part of society, provided that the opportunities exist and no physical or attitudinal barriers stand in our way.

Here are some thoughts on how to address the housing crisis affecting people with disabilities while also revitalizing our communities:

· A Housing Trust Fund can be developed, which would create a revenue stream for developing housing, providing rental subsidies, and paying for home modifications. Medicaid waiver programs with a home modification component can be created, and federal funds leveraged for accessibility modifications for those who need them.

· The State and advocacy groups should vigorously lobby the federal government (HUD, Congress) to better fund voucher programs that are tied to tenant based, not project based vouchers. 

· Various housing authorities can work together, and support efforts to apply for these Section 8 vouchers as a “local preference” target for those who want to transition from an institutional setting to the community.

· The creation of inclusion zones of affordable and accessible housing in mixed-use (commercial and residential) buildings and projects can add to the revitalization and diversification of a community.

· The New York State Division of Housing and Community Renewal (DHCR) should better enforce existing laws and should work to establish policies that would lead to the development of more accessible, affordable, and integrated housing.

· The state legislature can pass visitability legislation that requires all new single-family homes funded with state or federal funds be built with at least one no-step entrance, at least 32-inch wide doorways, and an accessible bathroom on the first floor.

· Finally, DHCR should take advantage of the HOME money that is currently available and use it for Tenant Based Rental Assistance (TBRA) that can act as a bridge subsidy until Section 8 vouchers become available.

These few solutions could go a long way towards addressing New York’s current housing crisis.

If more affordable, accessible, integrated housing were available, people with disabilities could live in their communities, and everyone would begin to see us as real human beings and valued members of our society. We deserve to have more opportunities to work, shop, go to school, volunteer, start businesses, and a host of other positive things. Not only would our inclusion in the community save the state money that would otherwise be spent on institutional care, but it would also generate tax revenues through our working and spending money.

When viewed in those terms, it is easy to see why addressing the lack of affordable, accessible, integrated housing is essential to revitalizing our communities.

Thank you for your time and attention.

Anita Cameron
Systems Advocate
Center for Disability Rights
497 State Street
Rochester, NY 14608
(585) 546-7510

Remember the Brook’s Landing Project that I wrote about a few months ago? Well, here is some great news!

Access update on the Staybridge Suites Hotel

Rick Rynski, Economic Development Specialist with the City of Rochester, has some good news regarding the Staybridge Suites Hotel, currently under construction as part of the Brook’s Landing revitalization project. In April 2007, there was a presentation at CDR/RCIL regarding the Brook’s Landing Project. The Project includes a new retail and office building in part occupied by the University of Rochester, the Urban Brew Coffee Shop, additional retail space along Genesee Street, and the 80-room Staybridge Suites Hotel. One of the entrances to the hotel would connect directly to a boardwalk along the Genesee River, but unfortunately, the was no wheelchair accessible egress from the hotel to the boardwalk. Hotel patrons who use wheelchair would have to travel 2-3 bolcks around the hotel to get to the waterfront. This was pointed out toRynski and Mark Johns, Senior Landscape Architect with Bergmann Associates during a meeting later that month. At the time, they, as well as the developer, felt that direct access from the hotel to the waterfront by people who use wheelchairs was unattainable.

Recently, Mr. Rynski informed Chris Hilderbrant, Director of Advocacy for the Center for Disability Rights, that the developers had come up with a design plan that allows egress to the boardwalk by persons who use wheelchairs. In the interest of hotel security, this access is only for patrons of the hotel. However, the important thing is that there is now wheelchair access! The developers thought outside of the box and did what they thought was impossible.

I thought that would post the official write-up of how we got those electronic doors at my place…

We finally have it!

An electronic door has finally been installed at 1 Pleasant Street/87 North Clinton! After several months of talks with the building management, and a letter to the president of Buckingham Properties, which owns the building, the deed has been done.

1 Pleasant Street/87 North Clinton is a mixed-use building which includes the AIDS Community Health Center, the Catholic Family Services Center, the Pleasant Street Apothecary, Pleasant Bunz Deli, and Restaurant, and the Lofts at Michaels-Stern. People with disabilities and seniors often come in for services, as well as to get their prescriptions.

For those who use wheelchairs, getting into the 1 Pleasant Street entrance, which is the only wheelchair accessible entrance to the building, was very difficult, as the doors would slam on the person’s wheelchair before he or she got through. Holding the door while trying to get through was virtually impossible. Staff at the AIDS Community Health Center approached Buckingham Properties about installing electronic doors, but was told that it was their responsibility.

In June 2007, a tenant of the Michaels-Stern Lofts who uses a wheelchair spoke with Carol Pospula, the manager of Michaels-Stern, regarding the difficulty that she was having entering the building. Ms. Pospula, herself, suggested an electronic door, and stated that it would be an easy solution that could be done very soon. When by August, the electronic door had not been installed, the tenant once again contacted management, but received no answer. The tenant then wrote a letter to the president of Buckingham Properties, the company that owns the building. Over the next three months, the tenant had conversations with the management, and was assured that the electronic doors would be installed. This finally happened on Monday, November 5, 2007.

The electronic doors were installed with the security of the building in mind, so that after hours, if I am  coming in, I would first use my fob to unlock the door, then, press the electronic button. The door fob activator has been moved, and placed next to the access button. If I am inside, and am going out after hours, I first press the Exit access button, then press the blue access button, which is next to the Exit button. The system works quite wll for me, and I am very pleased!