Downtown Barrie business aims to become more accessible

One downtown Barrie business will be the first to receive a free deployable ramp to become more inclusive.

The owner of Bohemia, an eatery on Dunlop Street East, reached out about getting a ramp with the StopGap Ramp Project after a would-be customer sent an email.

"She said she would love to come into my place but that she couldn't because she couldn't get in the door," explained owner Jill Dyck.

"With most of the buildings downtown being older, they aren't as accessible as we would like them to be. When they were built, it wasn't something that was considered at that time," said Sarah Jensen of the Downtown Barrie BIA.

"Some areas are great, but we have a lot of work to do with accessibility," said Yolanda Gallo, the regional Barrie StopGap Ramp Project coordinator.

The StopGap Ramp Project was founded by Luke Anderson in 2011 after a mountain bike accident left him with a spinal cord injury. The initiative has now placed more than 2,000 ramps worldwide to combat accessibility barriers.

The StopGap Ramp Project was founded by Luke Anderson (pictured)

"And this is not just for people with wheelchairs. We're talking about seniors with walkers, we're talking about parents with strollers, even delivery men bringing in parcels," emphasized Gallo.

Jensen recalled her grandmother's struggles with accessibility in Barrie.

"She had a walker, and it was difficult to get into places sometimes – Bohemia being one of them – so I'm glad to see it's going to be a lot more welcoming now," she said.

The ramps, costing between $300 and $500, are given to businesses for free thanks to donations like the $1,500 one from the Barrie Kiwanis Club in 2019.

"Kiwanis is all about serving the community, so this is all about being inclusive. Making accessibility for everybody," said Barrie Kiwanis Club president Tracey Craig.

"While we have funding, the ramps are free. Even if we don't have funding and they want a ramp, what we will do is we will try to find the funding to support the ramp. We are not asking businesses to pay for their own ramps. We will supply them with a ramp," added Gallo.

Daily accessibility is something many unknowingly take for granted. As much as these one-step ramps help physically, they also send a message.

"It absolutely tells your client base, your consumer, that we do care about you, we want your business, we want you to come in and feel welcome and feel like you are part of our community," believes Gallo.

"I don't have to think when I go to someplace whether I can get in or not. I think that's what we're kind of shooting for so that other people can be as thoughtless as me. They can just say I want to go there and get in. The end," said Dyck candidly.

The StopGap Ramp Project is hopeful that Bohemia will lead the way for other Barrie stores and remind owners they still have funding to provide more ramps to interested businesses.

"It's not that expensive, and it will make a big difference to the people that want to come in right now but are not able to," said Dyck.