Residents in wheelchairs have a tough time getting in and out of The Vineyards neighborhood in Scotts Valley. To create better access, the Scotts Valley City Council will consider two improvements to the neighborhood’s sidewalks, as recommended by the city’s Americans with Disabilities Act committee.
The issue was first raised at the Oct. 21 council meeting and will be discussed again once the costs are estimated.
When The Vineyards subdivision was constructed in 1990, it was built to ADA compliance. However, access to and from the neighborhood in a wheelchair is tricky, because the two main outlets out of the neighborhood are on inclines.
“The incline is higher than what a wheelchair could handle,” Councilman Dene Bustichi said. “We’re trying to focus on making one or two sidewalk accesses more wheelchair-friendly.”
The small suburb is adjacent to Vine Hill Elementary School and Siltanen Park and is enclosed by a wall that wraps around the neighborhood.
Ellen Buckingham, a certified developmental disabilities nurse, knows from experience how difficult it is to get wheelchairs up and down the curbs and inclines in the Vineyards neighborhood.
“The equipment can weigh a lot, and it’s not easy to get up the hill. It’s been an ongoing problem for a long time,” Buckingham said. “The entire community deserves access.”
Buckingham said the time it takes to get up and down the hill, as well as the difficulty of tackling curbs in a wheelchair, is a problem — especially in the case of an emergency.
“Every minute counts when it comes to those with disabilities,” she said.
Buckingham is part of the ADA committee, which first met in March. Other members include Bustichi, concerned local residents, and public works and police representatives.
Several recommendations have been put in place with little cost to the city’s general fund since the committee’s inception.
Recent improvements include the ramp that leads to the front door of the City Council chambers and written requests for local shopping centers to refurbish the handicapped parking striping in their lots.
The Vineyards is another area the committee found that could use some changes, Bustichi said.
A level sidewalk without an access ramp connects the southern part of the neighborhood to Vine Hill School Road. Public Works Director Ken Anderson said costs to make the sidewalk accessible to people in wheelchairs would be about $1,400.
The other area in question is at the north end of The Vineyards, where many school children access Vine Hill Elementary School via a short concrete ramp. However, that ramp is steeper than ADA requirements allow.
“It’s way too steep,” Anderson said. “The idea is to put in a much longer ramp to make it less steep. We’re trying to accomplish accessibility.”
The fix for the second location was initially predicted at the Oct. 21
council meeting to cost about $5,000, but Anderson said costs have been estimated at much more than that, and he is looking at other bids.
“We plan to ask the council to do it now or consider it for next year’s budget,” Anderson said. “Eventually, I think they will do it. The question just becomes when.”
At a glance
• The Americans with Disabilities Act committee will meet at 3 p.m. the third Thursday of each month at Scotts Valley City Hall, 1 Civic Center Drive, starting Jan. 21
