SAN ANGELO, Texas — From April 10-17, 2023, City of San Angelo employees were given a self-assessment survey to complete.
Said survey discussed issues related to the Americans with Disabilities Act, or ADA, which included basic administrative requirements, general non-discrimination, communications, department webpages and emergency management.
Employees were asked their opinions on varying services and since then, data has been collected and updates have been made.
"We've spent the meantime since that last meeting doing some self-assessment as a City, doing some questionnaires, having ADA advisors kind of look at the results and have combined it into a report that talks about only the programs and services of the City of San Angelo," City Attorney and ADA coordinator Theresa James said.
On Nov. 29, the City held an updated ADA town hall at the McNease Convention Center, 510 Rio Concho Dr., welcoming the public to listen while taking the time to express their opinions.
"We're really here to get some updates and also make sure that the community and the disability community has a voice in these updates, in things that are going on," attendee and San Angelo Advocacy co-chair Kimberly Henry said.
As someone with a disability whose child also has a disability, Henry is incredibly passionate about making positive changes to the community.
As a result of survey findings, the City wants to increase onboarding training to help those with disabilities, hire more interpreters, increase emergency management action steps, provide more signage for accessible seating during public performances, increase the number of curb ramps around town, etc.
"We wanna do some self-reflecting and tell them [the public] that these were the things that we weren't aware of, these are the things we can improve on," James said.
After receiving public feedback, the next step is to present ideas for change to the City Council while also making an update to the transition plan.
Henry hopes to see additional visible facilities for organizations so they all "fit the standard."
During the meeting, James expressed the sentiment, "This isn't just a City of San Angelo job, this is a San Angelo job."
The City also plans to send out a new survey in spring 2024 to discuss updates to the streets, sidewalks, buildings, etc.
Learn more about the ADA here.
