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in si de ha lto n. co m O ak vi lle B ea ve r | T hu rs da y, O ct ob er 31 ,2 01 9 | 30 General $9.00 | Children & Seniors $7.00 | All seats Tues $6.00 Film.CA CinemAS ShowTimeS For november 1-7 2019 new ThiS week: TerminATor: DArk FATe 171 Speers Road, Oakville (at Kerr St.) 905-338-6397 (MEWS)www.film.ca TerminaTor:DarkFaTe (14a) Fri: 10:50AM, 1:30, 4:20, 7:00, 9:20Fri: 10:50AM, 1:30, 4:20, 7:00, 9:20F Sat - Thu: 1:30, 4:20, 7:00, 9:20 maleFicenT:misTressoF evil (PG)maleFicenT:misTressoF evil (PG)m Fri: 10:40AM, 1:20, 4:00, 6:45, 9:25Fri: 10:40AM, 1:20, 4:00, 6:45, 9:25F Sat - Thu: 1:20, 4:00, 6:45, 9:25 ZombielanD:Double TaP (18a)ZombielanD:Double TaP (18a)Z Fri: 11:00AM, 1:10, 5:10, 7:15, 10:00Fri: 11:00AM, 1:10, 5:10, 7:15, 10:00F Sat - Thu: 1:10, 5:10, 7:15, 10:00 TheaDDamsFamily (PG) Fri - Thu: 1:00, 3:10, 5:30Fri - Thu: 1:00, 3:10, 5:30F Joker (14a) Fri - Thu: 3:00, 7:30, 9:40Fri - Thu: 3:00, 7:30, 9:40F JuDy (PG) Fri: 10:30AM, 12:45, 3:30, 6:30, 9:00Fri: 10:30AM, 12:45, 3:30, 6:30, 9:00F Sat - Thu: 12:45, 3:30, 6:30, 9:00 An Oakville woman living with mobil- ity issues is calling on the town, local busi- nesses and others to do what they can to make the community more accessible. Patricia Wiseman, a retired realtor who has called Oakville home for 20 years, said her life was radically changed April 29, 2018, when she fell down her basement stairs, shattering her right heel. Since then, she says, she has been deal- ing with severe pain, which significantly limits her ability to walk. While Wiseman can stomach the pain long enough to move around her house for short periods, anything more than that re- quires her to use a wheelchair. This is where Wiseman runs into prob- lems, noting she can get to her car and can drive around, but there are few places she can go that she finds accessible. "I have always been active. This is life- altering and boy did I get that full force in my face," said Wiseman. "What I am desperate to do is to find a means for all of us to be able to get to the stores, the harbour, to do things that we did before." One issue Wiseman has is with some of the town's parking lots. At some locations, she said, the pay sta- tion is 20 feet away from the accessible parking spot. She argues this creates an additional hardship for someone with mobility is- sues and questions why she must pay to use the accessible parking spot in the first place. "I don't understand how Oakville feels they are helping handicapped people with this," said Wiseman. "It is not about the money alone. It's the principle." Jane Courtemanche, director of strate- gy, policy and communications for the town of Oakville, said most of the munici- pal lots have the payment machine next to or near the accessible parking space and noted when new parking lots are build or an existing one is upgraded, the payment machine is installed next to the accessible space. She also pointed out parking can now be paid using the Honk mobile payment app, which makes attending the payment machine unnecessary. Courtemanche also said that drivers with accessibility parking permits who park at metered parking spots or at pay- and-display areas/lots in town pay to park as do other customers. "The permit is intended to provide ac- cess to designated spaces based on an indi- vidual's health condition and does not provide a parking subsidy," she said. Wiseman said she encounters other problems at stores noting she is not strong enough to physically propel a basic wheel- chair for any significant period and does not have the funds needed to either hire someone to push her or purchase an elec- tric wheelchair and the special van need- ed to transport and off-load it. She said some businesses and malls have mobility scooters, but this practice is not as widespread as it is in America, where Wiseman recently spent some time visiting family. She said the Metro grocery store where she shops only has one mobility scooter, which is not always available when she at- tends. "Home Depot in Burlington has two. I went to Home Depot five times recently, just to get out," said Wiseman. "I'd drive around the aisles. The feeling is I was free to see people and make jokes and laugh. You have to laugh at the situa- tion." When reached for comment, Metro Communications Specialist Sade Foster said Metro is committed to creating a more accessible environment for all cus- tomers. They noted each store typically carries two mobility scooters, but the quantity is dependent on store demand and location. "If a store requires additional mobility scooters, we will order more to fulfill the need," said Foster. Wiseman is hoping more businesses and malls will purchase additional mobil- ity scooters to make their facilities more accessible to people like her. The Oakville woman said she drives around looking for places she can go be- cause she doesn't want to get stuck in her home and become isolated. She said social media has saved her sanity but noted there is only so much time she can spend online or watching television or reading. At one point, it became too much, and Wiseman said she endured excruciating pain for an hour walking around at a store just so she could see people. She said this further damaged her foot, and her doctor has told her not to do it again. "I have to go out," said Wiseman. "I'm not the only one. I would like to see changes so that all of us have a chance to get out. If we want to go shopping, we should be able to." Courtemanche said the town is com- mitted to providing accessible facilities, programs and services. She said the Accessibility Advisory Committee reviews development applica- tions to make recommendations on acces- sibility improvements, and the town is committed to ensuring all of their facili- ties are barrier-free. Courtemanche said the town also en- sures that any new buildings or retrofits meet the accessibility requirements out- lined in the Ontario Building Code. She pointed out the town will be begin- ning a mobility study later this year and will be looking for input from the commu- nity and the Accessibility Advisory Com- mittee on how it can improve mobility in Oakville for people with disabilities. NEWS WOMAN WITH MOBILITY ISSUES CALLS FOR MORE ACCESSIBILITY SHE WANTS MORE LARGE BUSINESSES AND MALLS TO CARRY MOBILITY SCOOTERS DAVID LEA dlea@metroland.com An Oakville woman with mobility issues is calling for more accessibility in the community. David Lea/Torstar SIGN UP FOR OUR WEEKLY NEWSLETTER AT INSIDEHALTON.COM P L E A S E R E C Y C L E T H IS P A P E R