After nearly 20 years of petitioning, Stratford Police HQ finally has barrier-free access

Stratford police Chief Greg Skinner, accessibility advocate Diane Sims, and Stratford Mayor Martin Ritsma gleefully cut the ribbon for the police station’s new accessibility ramp. The ramp and accompanying barrier-free front entrance means that the station finally has a zero-threshold entrance after nearly 20 years of petitioning from the city’s advisory committee.

CONNOR LUCZKA, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

It’s been nearly 20 years since the accessibility advisory committee (AAC) first identified the Stratford Police Service (SPS)’s headquarters as inaccessible – but now the George Street building finally has a barrier-free entrance.

On May 7, the ramp was officially unveiled with a ribbon cutting done by Stratford Mayor Martin Ritsma, police Chief Greg Skinner, and Diane Sims, an accessibility advocate and co-chair of the AAC.

As Skinner said, a lot of work and a lot of people were involved in making the entrance and ramp a reality – but it was Sims’ advocacy that made it possible.

“Diane was the catalyst and she never let go of it,” Skinner said about Sims’ dedication to the project. “When I think about some of the stories that I've heard of people trying to access the building who had accessibility issues, it was heart wrenching to know what they had to go through to be able to access the police. So this solution, while it may not be perfect, is a lot better than we had and it will allow those members of the public that need to access our service have a free flow and movement to do that.”

The idea for the ramp is nearly 20 years old. The AAC, a group of accessibility-minded citizens who advise the City of Stratford in making the city as barrier-free (zero-threshold) as possible, made a motion in 2007 that identified the entrance to the police station as inaccessible, and directed the city to make it accessible.

The issue, however, remained untouched until 2022 when Sims wanted to go into the building on a rainy day to drop off some papers. Not being able to use the front steps off of George Street with her wheelchair, Sims went around the back and tried to use the elevator in the vestibule off of the St. Patrick Street entrance, only to be told that the elevator was only for the Ontario Court of Justice office (which shares the building with police).

“(They) told me that the elevator is only for the judicial side of the building and there’s no way to get in the station with a wheelchair,” Sims said. “Well I went home and I called Greg.”

Since that time, Sims successfully petitioned both Skinner and Ritsma in getting the issue into the 2024 budget. The headquarters has other issues, such as a lack of space and extensive maintenance needs, that necessitate a new building in the near future; however, staff, city council, and the AAC came to the ramp as the best solution.

As a semi-permanent structure, the ramp can be used at another location if or when a new headquarters for police is sourced. Additionally, being a metal structure rather than poured concrete saved taxpayer money in the long run. Along with the accompanying barrier-free front door and labour costs, the total project was billed as $200,000 in the 2024 budget – compared to the $275,000 price tag it would have had if it was concrete.

During the unveiling, both Skinner and Ritsma praised Sims for her staunch advocacy and the AAC’s continued work – while acknowledging that there is much more still to do. Police headquarters is still not fully accessible, with some internal work still to be done, and there are many more city-owned properties that need additional work to be fully accessible.

“We know we have lots of work to do within this building or a future build with regards to accessibility … and so we will continue to work on that,” Ritsma said after cutting the ribbon. “This is the first step of, I think, many more steps for accessibility, specifically around police services.”

The only thing which disappointed Sims about the project was the timeline. The ramp was supposed to be installed prior to Jan. 1, 2025, the deadline for the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act (AODA), provincial legislation which made it law for all public buildings to be made accessible; however, the work was severely snagged due to issues with the contractor and was only completed in early May.

Sims shared with the Times that now that the ramp has been installed, she is on the hunt for her next project. As the AODA deadline came and went this year with still much more to be done to make Stratford, Ontario, and Canada more accessible, there is a lot for her to choose from.

“I’ve got a few projects of my own on the go,” Sims smiled. “So I’m not sure what I’m going to tackle in the city – but it will be something.”