Thursday May 30, 2024 was Ottawa’s 21st AccessAbility Day. At City Hall, we celebrated the contributions and leadership of people with disabilities in our communities, highlighted some of the work that the City has undertaken to increase accessibility, and reflected on how we can all work together to achieve a more accessible and inclusive society. It was a huge success! The City of Ottawa’s Municipal Accessibility Plan (COMAP) is a multi-year strategy that demonstrates the City’s commitment to making accessibility a part of everyday business, for residents, visitors, and staff. This plan, which is a requirement under the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act (AODA, 2005), seeks to inform the City about gaps and barriers that currently exist for people with disabilities, whether permanent, temporary, visible or invisible, as they use City programs, services and facilities. The City’s new 2025-2029 COMAP will be developed through upcoming consultation sessions this summer. We extend invitations to our community of people with disabilities, which also includes agencies that support and work with people with disabilities, their caregivers, friends, family members and the general public. These consultations seek to gather feedback about accessibility at the City by the people and organizations who are most impacted. As we develop our new COMAP, we want to hear from all of you! There are several ways you can engage with us and provide your feedback: Attend an in-person or virtual consultation. Please see below for dates and locations for our upcoming consultation sessions. Complete our online survey through our Engage Ottawa page. Request a toolkit to conduct a consultation as a group without City staff present. Public feedback is so important in helping the City to improve. Please consider taking the time to contribute to our new COMAP. To register for a session listed below, please fill out the registration form. June 24, 1:00 – 2:30 pm, in-person at Ottawa City Hall, 110 Laurier Ave. West July 3, 6:00 – 7:30pm, in person at Peter D. Clark Place, 255 Centrum Blvd (in Orleans) July 9, 1:00 – 2:30pm, virtual over Zoom July 17, 10:00 – 11:30am, virtual over Zoom July 25, 6:00 – 7:30pm, in-person at Ben Franklin Place, 101 Centrepointe Dr. July 31, 6:00 – 7:30pm, virtual over Zoom |