A question of access
DOWNTOWN OBSTACLES ARE NOTED
By Jillian Ogawa
HERALD-LEADER STAFF WRITER
Who knew there was a "ski
slope" in downtown
Lexington?
That's what Bruce Burris and
others call a steep incline at
the corner of Market and
Short streets that makes a
wheelchair shoot down onto
the crosswalk, he said. Then
he pointed out another
obstacle in the crosswalk: a
manhole cover sticking about
an inch above the ground.
Burris, co-owner of Latitude
Artist Community, and
Belinda Sellers of Lexington
led a tour through downtown
Lexington as part of the city's
first Accessibilities Awareness
Day, put together by Project
Easy Access Lexington.
About 50 people gathered in
Triangle Park as part of the event.
"As we keep going block by block, it doesn't get any better," Burris said. "I think people
are stunned when they start to understand how inaccessible downtown is."
The idea to have a tour started when Sellers, who uses a wheelchair, tried to get some
coffee downtown and discovered she couldn't get into Starbucks because the shop didn't
have automatic doors. Without an automatic door, many commercial doors are often too
heavy for a person in a wheelchair to open, Burris said.
"I got a cup of coffee, but it took me and Bruce to get it," she said.
Mayor Teresa Isaac attended the rally. She noted that the city has made some
improvements, including making recreational activities more accessible, but noted that
more changes should be made.
During the tour, Burris pointed out several curb cuts are that are not aligned with
crosswalks that force people in wheelchairs into traffic.
The curb cuts also are troublesome for people with limited sight, like Paul Wiese. Wiese
said many guide dogs, including his dog Axel, are trained to lead a person across the
street by following the downward slope at the edge of the curb, which usually leads to the
crosswalk. But with the layout of some curb cuts in downtown, a dog could lead its owner
directly into traffic, he said. One time, he was able to stop his guide dog from going into
traffic because he can see some traffic signals on a dark day, he said.
Joan Beck, citizen's advocate for the Lexington-Fayette Urban County Government, also
went on the tour. She said many of the obstacles pointed out reminded her of a time she
tried to use a wheelchair downtown. She struggled for five minutes trying to open a door
but then gave up, she recalled.
"It's not fair to exclude any segment of our society because of the construction of our
infrastructure," she said.
