Work RERC

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Work RERC
Prepared for the 2006 APA National Planning
Conference April 22-26, 2006 San Antonio, TX

• Planning Socially Inclusive Accessible
  Communities (S523)
• Paul M.A. Baker, Ph.D., AICP
• Shelley Kaplan, MSccc
• Cheryl K. Contant, Ph.D.
• Robert G.B. Roy, MBA
• www.catea.gatech.edu

The Center for Advanced Communications Policy
(CACP) Southeast Disability and Business
Technical Assistance Center (SEDBTAC), Center for
Assistive Technology and Environmental Access
(CATEA), and the City and Regional Planning
Program, College of Architecture, Georgia
Institute of Technology National Institute on
Disability and Rehabilitation Research (NIDRR),
U.S. Department of Education
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1.0 Disability, Aging, and Human Experience A
Dialogue on Planning Socially Inclusive,
Accessible Communities

• Disability and aging are part of the human
  experience, but not familiar to everyone's
  personal experience.
• Planners, must be aware not only of the
  requirements of regulatory compliance, but of
  larger issues of community participation and full
  engagement.
• How then can we plan for inclusive communities,
  including people with disabilities, that go
  beyond the "building barriers" (i.e., the design,
  scoping and standards for individual buildings)?

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1.0b Disability, Aging, and Human Experience A
Dialogue on Planning Socially Inclusive,
Accessible Communities

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• Salon Objectives
• Develop a perspective of community inclusivity,
  including civil rights/equity issues
• Articulate social, economic and technological
  parameters of accessibility
• Rethink planning education preparation addressing
  disabilities, and the aging population, in light
  of evolving legislative/judicial integration
  decisions

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2.0 Framing the Conversation

• Issues of aging and disability as a fundamental
  component of the human condition
• Design, planning, and policymaking in
  communities, and community development
  normatively need to consider issues of
  socioeconomic accessibility and inclusion
• Planners and planning practice reflects training
  and understanding of contextual issues
• Lack of awareness does not make the problem go
  away

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3.0 Social/Policy Context Changing Face of Our
Nation

• Demographic Influences
• Citizen Expectations
• Legislative/Policy Initiatives
• Architectural Barriers Act (1968)
• Sec. 504, Rehabilitation Act of 1973
• Fair Housing Act (1988 amendments)
• ADA (1990)
• New Freedom Initiative (2001)
• HAVA (2002)
• Visitability Initiatives
• Project Civic Access

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3.0b The Changing Face of Our Nation (cont.)

• Supreme Court Decisions

• ADA Interpretations
• Olmstead Decision
• Fair Housing Enforcement
• Transportation Enforcement

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4.0 Segregation or Inclusion?
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5.0 Educational Context Planning Accreditation
Criteria

• Disability included in definition of diversity
• Goals and Objectives
• Students
• Faculty
• Administrative and Fair Practices
  (non-discrimination)
• Disability NOT specifically included in
  Curriculum criteria (income, race, ethnicity,
  gender) implicit yes (multicultural?)
• Knowledge
• Skills
• Values

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6.0 Professional Context AICP Code of Ethics

• share in the goal of building better, more
  inclusive (universal?) communities.
• Responsibility to Public
• Participation shall be broad enough to include
  those that lack formal organization or
  influence.
• We shall seek social justicespecial
  responsibility to planneeds of disadvantaged.

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7.0 Anchor Points for Plannings Identification

• Six Themes
• Human settlements (universal design?)
• Interconnections (accessibility and opportunity?)
• Future (aging in place?)
• Diversity of needs (all segments included?)
• Open participation (access, full participation?)
• Linking knowledge and collective action
  (technologies, access, action? public and
  private?)

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8.0 Empirical Context Survey of Academic
Programs and Professional Planners

• Study components
• Online survey of accredited planning schools
• Online survey of professional planners
• 68 accredited programs contacted/12 responded
• Reported focus (e.g. Physical design/Policy/Social
  Planning)
• Content exposure to accessible design

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8.0b Empirical Context Survey of Academic
Programs

• Programs with course content in
• Exploring design policy alternatives (9)
• Understanding barriers (8)
• Fair Housing Act (1988 amendments) (11)
• Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) (1990) (6)
• ADA Accessibility Guidelines (ADAAG) (3)
• Architectural Barriers Act (ABA) (2)
• Sec. 504, Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (2)
• None of the Above (1)

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8.0c Empirical Context Survey of Academic
Programs

• Courses with accessibility content (n17)
• 10 seminars
• 5 lectures
• 2 other
• 13 indicated accessibility was lt25 of content
• 3 indicated accessibility was 25-50 of content
• 10 elective
• 6 required

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9.0 Comments from Professional Planners Survey

• It is an eye opener to realizing I have some
  work to do in becoming more knowledgeable in this
  area.
• More awareness of how all of us become
  disabled.
• With the aging of the baby boomers, this will
  become a more prominent issue.
• Convincing planners isn't the problem helping
  planners sell need to others is the problem.
• We need to have better directions from our
  professional leaders/orgs. to make this happen.

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10.0 Questions to ponder

• Does the planning profession recognize disability
  as a social/civil rights issue that requires
  serious consideration in the planning process?
• How do (or do they) planners (practitioners and
  the academia) perceive a role for the profession
  in contributing towards an inclusive, accessible,
  disability- senior- friendly society?
• Are planners adequately prepared to address the
  needs of people with disabilities, especially in
  light of recent judicial decisions?

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11.0 Survey Solicitation Card
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City and Regional Planning Program Georgia
Institute of Technology
Wish to acknowledge the research support of
Nathan Moon of the Center for Advanced
Communications Policy (CACP)

• Supported in part by grant H133D010207,
  National Institute on Disability and
  Rehabilitation Research (NIDRR), U.S. Department
  of Education