Big wheels keep on turning

Sometimes the best way to understand a person’s struggles is to stand in their shoes, or in this case, ride their wheels.

Coeur d’Alene Mayor Steve Widmyer, and City Council members Kiki Miller, Dan English, Amy Evans and Christie Wood got a behind-the-wheel experience Friday afternoon as they navigated Sherman Avenue to understand the challenges faced by the wheelchair community.

Joined by city attorney Mike Gridley and planning commission vice-chair Jon Ingalls, the group made its way along the little over half-mile stretch from the Chamber of Commerce office to City Hall.

“You have no idea how it is to maneuver in a chair until you’re in one,” Widmyer said after finishing the stretch, showing off a blister on his thumb. “You just don’t know the work that it takes to navigate that so it’s really a learning experience.”

Denise Jeska, a member of the Coeur d’Alene pedestrian and bicycle advisory committee who organized the event, said the idea for the trip came from a post on Facebook where she saw a similar wheelchair challenge hosted in a different town.

“I thought, ‘what a great idea,’” Jeska said. “I've seen a lot of issues around town, not just downtown, but around town. We need assistance for people with disabilities.”

Improperly placed sandwich boards on sidewalks are just one example of issues that have posed a threat to the wheelchair community, especially on busy days during the summer when tourist season is in full swing and restaurants have outdoor seating.

“It was like a ski course,” Jeska said. “You had to go around everyone’s boards and they were just placed willy-nilly.”

She said specifically it becomes difficult when the boards are placed in front of sidewalk ramps.

“That makes a huge difference,” Jeska said. “If you don't need those, or if you're a walker, you would never notice those.”

Bicycles leaned against trees also take up much of the sidewalks making it difficult to maneuver. Jeska also pointed out that some trees along the sidewalks downtown are missing grates, and there are some areas not even accessible because the old sidewalks are too uneven.

“When you’re in this position there’s a big difference between really level and kinda level,” said Councilman Dan English. “It’s certainly more physically demanding than you think or realize.”

Dave Passaro, a Coeur d’Alene resident, said his mother, who is in a wheelchair, loves to get ice cream downtown, but has found it difficult to get around during the busy seasons.

“You have this huge dilemma where what happens is the people that are disabled then say, ‘Screw it, I'm not going to go to Sherman,’” Passaro said. “‘Don't take me there because it's too hard.’”

While he fully supports sidewalk dining, Passaro said he would like to see some adjustments made to make downtown more accessible for the disabled.

“We have a lot of people in our community who have mobility issues and they want to enjoy the same things that everyone else does,” said Tessa Jilot, chair for the Coeur d’Alene pedestrian and bicycle advisory committee. “We're bringing together a lot of key decision makers, and so by letting them experience this firsthand, we're hoping that when they make decisions in the future, they keep those experiences.”

Jeska said she hopes by having city officials directly experience these struggles, it will bring awareness to the disabled community as well as more consideration for their needs when city codes are modified or put in place.

“We definitely can do better,” Widmyer said. “We’ve made some progress but we haven’t made enough.”