Age Friendly Tucker: Accessibility Means Inclusivity

Dr. Lois Ricci

The City of Tucker has been recognized by both the Atlanta Regional Commission (ARC) Lifelong Communities Partnership and the World Health Organization (WHO) Age-Friendly City program. Both agendas share a common goal of transforming communities into places that work for every age and stage of life. Each of these programs includes accessibility as a key component that influences a community’s overall health and quality of life. By following guidelines set by the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), the City of Tucker ensures accessibility to all residents, regardless of age or physical capabilities, and thus enables complete inclusivity.

The ADA was passed thirty years ago, when there were little or no accommodations in public spaces for those with disabilities. The strength of the ADA is that it established what “equal opportunity” and “reasonable accommodation” mean for people with disabilities. Accessibility standards issued under the ADA apply to places of public accommodation, commercial facilities, and state and local government facilities in new construction, alterations, and additions. Adherence to these regulations is enforced through fines and penalties but generally businesses and governments realize that accommodating those with disabilities enhances economic growth. These accommodations also guarantee a level of life equality for all; one in five residents has some level of disability, and as our population ages, that percentage will continue to grow.

Ken Hildebrandt, Tucker’s city engineer, manages the city’s use of specialpurpose local-option sales tax (SPLOST) funds, working with other engineers and developers to ensure that projects are constructed to meet city and state guidelines. Earlier this year, Tucker completed its first-ever Transportation Master Plan, a six-month process to study the immediate needs and long-range goals of how people get around in Tucker, and Hildebrandt plans to get the community involved in the process. Residents have already seen some of the SPLOST funds used to construct more sidewalks to enable more and safer pedestrian traffic in the city. Most of the city’s sidewalks, pedestrian crossings, and curb cuts downtown are ADA accessible, and non-compliant conditions have been identified and will be rectified in the near future.

Shawn Stone, president of Friends of Tucker Parks, and Rip Robertson, director of Tucker Parks and Recreation, noted that access to all of Tucker’s parks is available for those with mobility challenges, with parking near facilities and trails. In addition, some parks do offer trails designed in accordance with ADA guidelines. • Henderson Park (4000 Henderson Park Road) offers some access to park trails on the lake side of the park as well as an ADA accessible paved walkway through the park’s Native Plant and Wildlife Walk (NPWW). • William McKinley Peters Park (1832 Clark Drive) has a paved walking track. • Once the new boardwalk is completed in August at Probst Park (5623

Hugh Howell Road), access will be available from the new parking lot. • Tucker Nature Preserve (4408 Lawrenceville Highway) is also ADA accessible. • Kelly Cofer Park (259 N Park Drive) is ADA accessible, including the pollinator garden.

All of Tucker’s playgrounds meet ADA requirements for accessibility as well as the restrooms at Henderson Park Tennis Courts, Henderson Community Garden, and the tennis courts at Rosenfeld Park (2088 Glacier Drive). Tucker’s Recreation Center (4898 Lavista Road) is also fully ADA compliant.

The Lifelong Community Committee continues to work with city government on additional ideas to improve inclusivity and accessibility, such as upgrading cross walk signals to add vocalization for the vision impaired, or to extend timing to assist people who have mobility challenges. Bus stops should be adapted to accommodate wheelchairs, by adding ramps and spaces for chairs or scooters. Businesses should also be encouraged to accommodate wheelchairs or scooters, such as wider entries and aisles and lower counters. Residential builders have also been encouraged to build homes that accommodate those with current or potential mobility challenges, that can be accessed without stairs, instead using gentle slopes and minimal thresholds (zero-entry) and with wider doorways and hallways.

The Lifelong Community and Age-Friendly City standards overlap and interact with each other, both within and between the designations but accessibility is a common thread throughout. Addressing the needs of those with disabilities helps create a community meeting the needs of all residents.

Dr. Lois Ricci is a longtime resident of Tucker, where she chairs the Tucker Civic Association Lifelong Community Committee. She serves as an adjunct faculty member at Kennesaw State University, where she teaches gerontology courses and the Professional Development in Gerontology Certificate Class. Ricci also serves as an official representative for American Association of Retired Persons (AARP), co-facilitator for the Rosalyn Carter CareNet, and on the board of the Atlanta Regional Commission Advisory Committee on Aging.