Library receives Stavros award for accessibility

Date: 11/10/2008

By Courtney Llewellyn

Reminder Assistant Editor



EAST LONGMEADOW Every year, the Stavros Advocates for Independent Living, based in Amherst, give out Access Awards to organizations, businesses and individuals who have improved access at their facility or in their community for persons with disabilities, and this year, the East Longmeadow Public Library earned one of these awards.

The library was nominated by patron Jean Delaney and won a Paul Winske Award.

This award is given to business, organizations or individuals who have taken new or innovative steps to improve access. Winske was an advocate at Stavros who worked hard to make communities in the Pioneer Valley more accessible. He founded the first "handicapped parking patrol" in Western Massachusetts and was the driving force in establishing annual awards for businesses that made themselves more accessible, according to the Stavros Web site (www.stavros.org).

Delaney is a member of the Hampden County Disability Action Network, which is concerned with Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) regulations and access to businesses and government facilities.

"I thought East Longmeadow has done a wonderful job [with the library]," Delaney said. "It used to be crowded and the access was poor. It was not good. I thought the library deserved to be commended for its new personality."

Delaney has been a resident and a member of the library for 30 years and saw the building's renovation take place in 2004.

"It used to be the old hardware store," Susan Teale, assistant director of the library, said. "[Before the renovation], the linoleum on the floor was starting to ripple. It was not really safe for anyone." She continued that the book stacks were not far enough apart and that it was difficult for some patrons to enter the building without automatic doors.

"There was one advantage. The old building was only one floor," she said.

"We're very happy to receive this award," Susan Peterson, library director, said. While the library is very accessible as is, Peterson plans on making it more so.

"We want to fix the handicap parking, revamp the Web site with a larger font option and make it available for every Web browser," she said. "We want to make the site more accessible."

The Access Awards ceremony, which took place Oct. 22 at the Delaney House in Holyoke, honored both the library as an organization and Sean Kelley, senior project manager for East Longmeadow.

"Every kind of reader is welcome in East Longmeadow," the press release from the ceremony stated. "There's good general accessibility, with power-assisted doors at two different entrances, along with elevator access to the second floor. The library also has a strong selection of large print books."

Kelley was recognized as the person "responsible for the town's sidewalks, and he's done a fine job of making sure that each curb ramp has the tactile strips necessary for the safety of persons with visual impairments."

The East Longmeadow United Methodist Church also received a Paul Winske Award for accessible parking, elevator access to all levels and designated wheelchair spaces in the sanctuary.