ACCESSIBLE CITY AWARD

Is your city walkable?

What about wheels?

Is Accessibility built-in?

By Design
New construction brings great opportunities to design in accessibility in from the foundation. The benefits of this can be tremendous for everyone.

Integral to Design
Instead of treating accessibility as an add-on afterthought or checkmark on the ADA compliance requirement,  let's look at creative ways to raise the bar on designing great experiences for all of our residents and visitors.

Beyond Ramps
For example instead of ramps, which are often awkward even when ADA compliant.  Let's look for solutions that don't need them.  Normal slopes and moderate grades are better and more cost-effective anyway.

Main Spaces
Attractions can have spaces and doorways wide enough for wheelchairs and other mobility devices to navigate via the same route as other visitors. No one wants to be singled out and sent to a freight elevator.

True Connectivity
Wide sidewalks with curb cutaways are nice and may meet ADA compliance, but are useless if not part of a connected path.  Like a broken wire or unplugged internet cable, a lovely sidewalk without connectivity is a tease or worse, it's a trap for some unsuspecting user unaware that the "bridge is out" ahead.

Big Picture
Connectivity is what makes the pieces add up to a whole that is usable. Otherwise none of it makes much practical sense.

Reality Tests
We must continually ask, "Is it possible, practical, and reasonably comfortable for a  person with wheels or other limitation to actually use this feature and path to go from points A to B?

Real People
Can a mom pushing a stroller with one hand while holding the hand of a preschooler in the other get from the parking garage to the public market safely and easily?  Or will it be a miserable frightening experience to never ever be attempted again?

Practical
ADA law addresses individual features. PRACTICAL ACCESSIBILITY demands that we go much further to consider connectivity and real life context of use.  As we tie destinations together with sidewalks and pathways, let's consider the variety of people and circumstances of use in composing the design.  Then let's test those theories with real people as much as we can to validate the approach and seize new opportunities it may reveal. 

Connecting Dots
Is the distance between city features too far for some seniors to walk without a bench to take a rest?  What else?? 

Beyond ADA
There are countless quality factors impacting accessibility and the experiences of everyone that ADA alone might not tell us.

Web3
Then there's digital and other virtual accessibility. In this post COVID culture where on-line/metaverse/web3 elements are no longer an add-on option, but often the only means to engage in many aspects of daily life and community, neither can accessibility be treated as an add-on. It must be built-in.

Digital + Real = One World
And like city streets, digital accessibility cannot be just feature by feature, but holistically considered as integral to the entire set of life experiences in a truly Accessible City.

Together
Working together with empathy and creativity, Frisco can raise the standard again, this time in defining how to become Accessible City Frisco.

References

Knowability

Web Accessibility Fundamentals Overview

Introduction to Web Accessibility

Essential Components of Web Accessibility

Accessibility Principles

How People with Disabilities Use the Web

Wheelchair Accessible

Art for your desktop

Makes your smart phone into art. The concept is borrowed from data dashboards. A little squiggly line can say so much! about the status of a system - or about you! Like the little ziggy zaggy line on your heart monitor. Lub dub!

What’s YOUR Sparcline?

Made of solid steel. It’s VERY functional Art

What’s next?

This concept is growing to become something far bigger,.

See Sparcline Live

“Art that’s functional?“

Yes. These were shown in some art galleries and shows.

“Oh really?”

There were curators who didn't feel something that served a functional purpose belonged in a gallery. Well, ----- them. I'm an Industrial Designer by education. I LOVE things that serve a useful purpose AND are beautiful. That's like the ultimate accomplishment. For that reason, I'm still proud of these cute little things.

What?

Honestly, I think the Sparcline confused people because it is functional art. It actually works well. Art that is useful? Boom. Minds blown.

I loved showing in the Random Art Gallery run by Brenton and Jason. Great crowds. Over the top cool!

Low Inventory

I still have a limited number of these.

MySparcLine: Sculpture for your smart device

This was a Kickstarter project and a lot of fun. A lot of these are out there still being used and the Sparcline appeared in several art shows and galleries.

See archived Kickstarter campaign; MySparcLine: Sculpture for your smart device

Refinement