If you live in Saugeen Shores and accessibility is an issue for you, the town is doing it’s best to help.
Council has adopted a policy that sets out accessibility standards for the customer service the town provides.
The move comes as Ontario municipalities try to meet provincial regulations by the January 1st, 2010 deadline.
The policy ensures that people with disabilities can be accompanied by service animals and support workers at municipal facilities, and be able to use assistive devices for mobility and communication.
Municipal employees will receive training for the new policy during the first week of September.
Councillor Victoria Serda — a member of Accessibility Committee — says it’s not always easy to identify that people have certain needs, and the town needs to know how to identify them and accept them properly.
Serda says one disability she wants the town to be considerate of is low vision.
She says people with low vision have difficulty reading certain things on websites and signs, and wants to be sure the town doesn’t have to spend a lot of money later on to put up new signs.
Councillor Luke Charbonneau is pleased with the policy, saying the time has come to make services fully accessible, and he likes how Saugeen Shores is implementing the process.