I am a 60-year-old woman with multiple disabilities. and have lived, worked, volunteered and played in Durango for 39 years. I want to commend VOA’s Durango Community Shelter and Southwest Safehouse for providing me with services when I was in need.
Although there are stairs at the shelter, I never had to climb the stairs to receive the services they provide to anyone else, disability or not. I was accommodated. And the Safehouse went above and beyond the call of duty to make the house accessible to me.
In 1998, while employed at the Southwest Center for Independence, I went to both the planning and inspectors offices and asked for what information they could provide for new construction, following Americans with Disabilities Act guidelines. Neither could provide the information. I was told they didn’t know much about the laws. So if we want to point a finger, we should start with the inspectors and planners. All construction must be approved by them and they don’t follow ADA law, nor do they inform people of ADA accessibility codes. Let’s work together to help those who help others, not trash them.
Debbie Drago
Durango
