2 weeks Ago
DALTON — When resident David Wasielewski visits Town Hall for personal or professional business, he has to wait outside. “I can’t go to Town Hall,” said Wasielewski, who uses a wheelchair. “Now, I park in front of the building, and whoever I’m meeting comes out to see me.
” It's a problem many disabled residents face when trying to enter Dalton's Town Hall, police station or library as all are in need of improvements to meet accessibility requirements, according to residents and town officials. In order for a municipal building to be ADA compliant in Massachusetts, it must be designed and constructed to be readily accessible to people with disabilities, including features like ramps, accessible restrooms and clear pathways. The Dalton Town Hall is not currently ADA-compliant.
For a municipal building in Massachusetts to comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act, it must be designed and constructed to be readily accessible to people with disabilities, including features like ramps, accessible restrooms and clear pathways. For those towns that don't meet these requirements, like Dalton, they are required to have an ADA self-evaluation and transition plan on file. In January 2023, the town put together a transition plan and self-evaluation for Americans with Disabilities Act improvements.
"The town hall, which includes the Police Station, was found to be inaccessible with major improvements required, as set forth in the plan," according to the town's ADA transition plan and evaluation. Two years later, not much has been done. Wasielewski, a member of Dalton’s Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) Committee and also chair of the Green Dalton Committee , is one of many disabled residents who are seeking changes to the town’s municipal buildings.
Elevators, handicap-accessible counters and safe stairs are among many improvements desired by residents. “It just never gets there,” Wasielewski said regarding renovations. “It’s not just an elevator [in Town Hall].
The other renovation plans just keep moving around and are never finalized.” Town Manager Tom Hutcheson declined to comment for the story. The Dalton Town Hall is on a list of municipal buildings that need upgrades to become ADA-compliant.
Wasielewski, who has lived in Dalton since 2000, became partially paralyzed after he suffered a stroke in 2005. He is now unable to go inside some municipal buildings and often joins meetings via Zoom. “A lot of my assumptions about how accessible the world is were kind of trashed when I had to go through that experience,” he said.
Wasielewski is a member of the ADA Committee that was formed in 2022. The committee does not have a coordinator as the town has not replaced the former coordinator, Alyssa Maschino. Wasielewski said he joined the committee because it initially had no disabled members, finding it “kind of ironic.
” Now, there are two disabled members on the committee. The committee has made some improvements, Wasielewski said. In June 2024, they obtained seven ADA accessible picnic tables from MassCOR.
The committee received the Municipal ADA Improvement Grant for $6,414, allowing them to put one table at the library and the rest at local parks. The committee also advocated for voting to be moved from the CRA to the senior center. Wasielewski notes that committee members were the “drivers” behind the move and got the petition and warrant needed.
The senior center is the only municipal building that is accessible. “The attendance is definitely up with some of the town meetings,” said Dalton Council on Aging Director Kelly Pizzi. Dalton Police Chief Deanna Strout is no stranger to poor building conditions.
The police station uses space heaters because it has no heat, and Strout wears a jacket in her office to stay warm. The station also lacks accessibility for all residents, with a ramp to the building that is not always functional and stairs inside the building that are not safe for disabled residents. Strout notes that when a disabled or elderly resident comes in, an officer will have to meet them at the top of the stairs to help them get down.
“We are a police department and we should be accessible to everyone, and right now, we’re just not,” Strout said. “That’s upsetting to us. .
.. We want to be accessible to our entire community.
” The transition plan from 2023 found that the police station was inaccessible, with major improvements required. “There’s nothing we have that’s handicap accessible,” Strout said. “If we have a [disabled] prisoner, [they] have to come down a whole flight of stairs, which is dangerous for them.
” Strout recounted an instance in which a man who was held in custody had only one leg. The man needed to be carried down the stairs by officers, which Strout notes can be “humiliating.” A key note from the transition plan was that the town acknowledged it should prioritize improvements to the Town Hall and the police station to eliminate all architectural barriers within the next five years.
Two years later, the police station is still in poor condition. There is no bed structure in the police cells, and there is just a mattress on the floor. Strout notes that the narrow cells are “horrific.
” The inside of a cell at the Dalton Police Station. With no bed structure and only a mattress on the floor, the cell is not handicap accessible. “I can’t even imagine if we had someone who was unable to walk on their own,” Strout said.
“They would have to sit on the floor in the cell. ..
. It’s inhumane.” The cells also lack plumbing, so if a person in custody needs to use the restroom, they have to be brought up the stairs by an officer.
The station is past repair, with Strout highlighting that the only solution is a new facility. The Public Safety Facility Advisory Committee recently received a recommendation from architect Brian Humes to put the new facility at 120 First St., the old Dalton High School site.
Wasielewski notes that the ADA Committee is currently in flux and has not met since December. However, the committee does have a meeting planned for April 23. He is optimistic that when the committee meets again, it will be able to keep moving forward with plans.
“There are definitely possibilities out there,” Wasielewski said. “We keep monitoring the grants and the availability of funds.”.
