Emily F. Keller

Special Report One Year After Sandy: Are The City's Most Storm-Vulnerable Communities Being Heard?

Contributed reporting to the Gotham Gazette special report exploring community responses to Mayor Bloomberg’s plan, “A Stronger, More Resilient New York,” one year after Hurricane Sandy. You can read the series here.

City Council Proposes Business Accessibility Bills

    A City Council hearing late last year has led to two new bills promoting business accessibility.

    City Council Member Deborah Rose is the primary sponsor of Intro 744, which would require agencies to educate business owners on issues concerning access for persons with disabilities. The bill is co-sponsored by 19 Council members.

    The bill would require the Mayor’s Office for People with Disabilities (MOPD) to work with city agencies to develop an education plan for business owners. According to the bill, “Such plan shall include, but not be limited to, education on federal, state and local disability access laws, common barriers to accessibility, and methods to help pay for modifications that are required to meet accessible standards.”

Outer Borough Taxi Plan with Accessible Medallions On Hold

    Legislation to allow livery cabs to pick up street hails in the outer boroughs and increase the number of accessible medallions has been stalled.

     The legislation was passed in June but Governor Andrew Cuomo said he will not sign the bill until several issues have been resolved, including wheelchair accessibility.

Obituary of Matthew Sapolin

    The first Commissioner of the New York City Mayor’s Office for People with Disabilities has died.

    Matthew Sapolin, 41, passed away on November 29^th. The cause of death was cancer, which he had battled since childhood.

    Sapolin was born in Islip, New York. He became blind at age five from bilateral retinoblastoma, a cancer affecting the optic nerve. 

    He held a BA in Philosophy from New York University (NYU), where he was co-captain of the wrestling team. Sapolin earned the University Athletic Association Athlete of the Week honor three times and received the President's Service Award for Volunteerism and Community Service upon graduating. He also held an MA in Public Health Administration from NYU’s Wagner School of Public Service.

Mayor’s Office Holds Disability Mentoring Day

    The Mayor’s Office for People with Disabilities (MOPD) held a series of events for Disability Mentoring Day, a part of National Disability Employment Awareness Month.

    The eighth annual event linked jobs seekers who have disabilities with potential employers and provided opportunities for networking, mentoring and work experience in the job seekers’ preferred fields.

    The main event took place October 19 when job seekers were able to shadow professionals to gain knowledge about their day-to-day work and how to prepare for their careers. The employers learned about the value that people with disabilities bring to their professions.

Disabled in Action Joins Occupy Wall Street

    Members and supporters of Disabled in Action (DIA) joined the Occupy Wall Street movement, gathering at Zuccotti Park in lower Manhattan on October 16^th.

    Pat Walls, who attended the event with her husband Phillip Walls, said Occupy Wall Street reminds her of her college days as she spoke out against government service cuts.

    “Specifically, I am really afraid of the cuts to homecare services because I am really dependent on my home attendant,” said Walls. She also criticized a new limit for physical and occupational therapy to twenty visits a year, which restricts her ability to receive care for her leg problems.

    (David Dopico and Phillip Walls pictured)

Taxi and Limousine Commission Approves Purchase of MV-1

    The New York City Taxi and Limousine Commission (TLC) unanimously approved a regulation change to allow wheelchair users to sit in the front of taxi and livery vehicles, paving the way for the industry to purchase MV-1 vehicles.

    The MV-1, which is manufactured with a ramp at production, is considered more durable than vehicles that are retrofitted to become accessible later.

    Production of the MV-1 began several weeks ago and there is already a back order of 4,000 vehicles, with the first 1,000 sold out. Fred Drasner, chair of the Vehicle Production Group that makes the MV-1 said the company plans to sell 12,000 vehicles next year. The MV-1 sells for about $39,000 and Drasner said the vehicle’s fuel efficiency and natural gas incentives from the government will help offset the cost.

Advocates Sue City Over Emergency Preparedness

    Disability Rights Advocates has filed a discrimination lawsuit against Mayor Michael Bloomberg and the City of New York, charging them with failing to include people with disabilities in emergency planning.

    The lawsuit filed in Federal District Court in the Southern District of New York reflects on both Tropical Storm Irene and the 9/11 attacks. As the storm approached the city as a Category 1 hurricane, advocates say city officials’ televised announcements did not include sign language interpreters, evacuation maps were not usable to people with low vision and school buses that were used for evacuations did not contain lifts or seating areas for people with mobility disabilities.

Taxi Accessibility Fight is On the Move

    The fight for taxi accessibility for wheelchair users in New York City is picking up steam. A series of recent events has thrown taxi access into the spotlight and a pending court decision could influence the future of the fleet.

    A class action lawsuit charging the City’s Taxi and Limousine Commission (TLC) with discrimination is winding its way through the federal court system with a hearing scheduled for November 22 before United States District Judge George B. Daniels of the Southern District of New York.

    Lawyer Julia Pinover of Disability Rights Advocates, the nonprofit legal center representing the plaintiffs said, “It could be a long oral argument. If the judge rules with either party, the lawsuit’s over at the trial stage.”

    [Photo: Jean Ryan and Nadina LaSpina pretend to hail a cab.]

The Impacts of Tropical Storm Irene

    During and after Tropical Storm Irene passed through the tri-state area, people with disabilities and their advocates reported lack of accessibility at some evacuation centers and insufficient disaster planning for the disability community.

    The City ordered evacuations from “Zone A” neighborhoods that are considered the most vulnerable to flooding. Susan Dooha, executive director of the Center for Independence of the Disabled, New York (CIDNY) surveyed six of the shelters for those residents and found problems with accessibility.