Evanston will host an open house on the Accessibility is Freedom: Americans with Disabilities Act Transition Plan Update.

Community members can share input on the update on Thursday from 4 to 7 p.m. at the Levy Senior Center. Steps to update Evanston’s ADA Transition Plan began in September when the city partnered with Altura Solutions, a Texas-based company that specializes in helping spaces adhere with ADA regulations, to create a new plan to enhance accessibility citywide. The last update was in 2012.

The update will include information about the state of city buildings, communicate existing architectural and program barriers in the city and make plans for future improvements. It intends to address accessibility in parks, municipal facilities, sidewalks and intersections, as well as programs and services. 

Community members can also watch a video and complete a survey to share their insights between Nov. 18 and Dec. 2 through the project website.

American Sign Language interpretation will be available throughout the workshop. Residents can speak on topics like accessibility gaps, city buildings and facilities they frequently visit and how to generally improve accessibility in the city.

The workshop is about halfway through the city’s project timeline, following an initial analysis and assessments made in September and October. Altura has also created an advisory group with Evanston community members to collaborate.

The city hopes to complete the plan by February 2022 after gaining more community input, according to the project website.

Email: [email protected] 

Twitter: @KatrinaPham_

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