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Accessible Chicago

By Joan Leotta

One of the biggest challenges for wheelchair users who travel is knowing exactly how accommodating a tourist attraction or business stop might be. Thanks to a unique Web site, planning a trip to Chicago—or, for residents, touring within the city limits—has gotten easier.

AccessibleChicago.org, a site that began as a 2003 class project for student Catherine Marsden, has become the premier place for people with mobility disabilities to find detailed information about Chicago's attractions. More than simply a list of locations that describe themselves as accessible, Marsden's information reveals what “accessible” means at each location. Marsden provides listings only for locales that a wheelchair user—often Marsden's own daughter—has checked our firsthand. The site describes in detail features such as the parking situation, the number of steps to get to refreshment areas, and the bathroom accommodations. In addition to information about specific locations, the site provides general advice and links to help wheelchair users navigate Chicago.

The Chicago Mayor's Office for People with Disabilities has praised Marsden's site for the assistance it provides. Melissa Stratton, MOPD's Director of Public Information, says, “Our office works closely with Ms. Marsden to [help her] provide information of interest to residents and visitors with disabilities on the AccessibleChicago.org Web site.” On the MOPD's official Web page, the city provides a link to Marsden's site as a featured resource for people with disabilities.

In turn, on AccessibleChicago.org Marsden posted information about the AccessChicago event, the largest products and services exhibition for people with disabilities, their families, and friends in the Midwest, co-sponsored by MOPD. “The Mayor's office helps us answer questions from visitors about the area,” says Marsden.

Stratton adds, “We feel that the AccessibleChicago.org web site, and any vehicle for increasing public awareness about the accessibility of sites and attractions, has a positive impact upon the disability community in Chicago.” The city of Chicago makes many efforts to enhance accessibility and has recently been recognized by the Open Doors organization as a top tourist destination for travelers with disabilities. 

Marsden hopes that AccessbileChicago.org will save city visitors time so that they spend more time enjoying their trip and less time planning it. She also hopes that, by helping people with disabilities get out and about, the site might help end feelings of isolation. “I want to embolden and empower people with disabilities to get out of the house and enjoy this beautiful city,” she states. “They need not be intimidated by the need to take taxis and trains. There are resources out there to help those with mobility impairments. They just need to know about them.”

Development and Purpose of the Site

Marsden's daughter Helen, now 13, was diagnosed with quadriplegic cerebral palsy soon after birth. Determined to continue the family's regular outings from their Palatine, Illinois home to nearby downtown Chicago, Marsden often struggled to maneuver Helen's wheelchair.

As Helen grew older, Marsden returned to school to pursue a master's degree in marketing. As part of a class project, she developed the AccessibleChicago.org site. She still tends the site herself, and over the three years it's been up, her ability to craft the pages and manage the content has grown along with the site's resources.

Says Marsden, “I developed the information to show people with disabilities that there is a way to do this, take family-fun trips, explore the city in or with a wheelchair. Even for the places that are not as easy to visit—it is possible.

“I want to provide a site that helps people with disabilities say, ‘If I want to go there, how will I do it?' not simply say, ‘I can't go there because it's too hard,'” she continues. “Some places are more accessible than others. It is more than a matter of the accessibility symbol on the door or site.”

Marsden looked to sites about accessible touring in Philadelphia and San Francisco as models and hopes that people with disabilities in other cities will, in turn, be inspired by AccessibleChicago.org. While she admits that she puts a lot of hours into maintaining the site, she feels that its simple structure and Yahoo hosting should make her efforts fairly easy to replicate.

Site offerings

AccessibleChicago.org opens with a welcome page that provides a site overview in easy-to-follow text and photo links. Resources listed on the site include accessible hotels, taxi companies that accommodate wheelchairs, tips on using public transportation, and descriptions of touring places such as the Botanic Gardens of Glencoe, just outside the city. The “Sample descriptions from AccessibleChicago.org” sidebar gives an indication of the content visitors find on the site.

Site visitors will also find news about Chicago happenings that benefit persons with disabilities. For example, a recent notice announced the opening of Chicago's first-ever fully-accessible playground for children with disabilities: Boundless Playground Columbus Park, located at 500 South Central Avenue.

Marsden maintains that, in addition to being a place for her to provide tips from her own experiences, the site “allows people to share information.” AccessibleChicago.org includes ideas from others who have had successful experiences navigating the city as well as testimonials from site users. For example, in the testimonials section, a visitor named Angie writes, “I have been planning trips for adults with a variety of disabilities for years, and this site appears to answer a lot of questions I've always struggled to find answers for. Great job!”

Future plans for the site

AccessibleChicago.org has just recently received official designation as a 501c3 non-profit corporation, with a stated goal of “combat[ing] the isolating feelings of physical disability by bringing wheelchair users to one of the most beautiful cities in the world, Chicago, Illinois.” With this designation, Marsden hopes to broaden the site's scope to include more destinations and resources. She has already begun to apply for grants that will increase the site's visibility to people with disabilities and has made efforts to reach out to the broader Chicago community.

In an effort to establish a rapport with Chicago businesses, Marsden now offers stickers through her site that businesses can purchase for $30 and post in the windows of their stores. The sticker, says Marsden, “lets people with disabilities know that the business owner is someone who really welcomes and, in fact, actively seeks the business of people with disabilities.” In turn, Marsden says she “will also provide a list of sticker holders on the site—and the donation is tax-deductible!”

AccessibleChicago.org provides an opportunity not only to spread the word about accessible outings for people with disabilities but also to encourage the buying power of this community. At heart, Marsden's message to people with disabilities through this site is, “There is a way to come out and play.”

Edited by Mary-Louise Piner.

Copyright © 2006 The Solutions Marketing Group, Inc. All Rights Reserved