Former Cambridge accessibility committee chair says city not living up to its obligations

A Cambridge man says he has stepped down from the city’s accessibility advisory committee. CTV’s Spencer Turcotte tells us why.

The former chair of the City of Cambridge’s Accessibility Advisory Committee (AAC) says he stepped down from his position for similar reasons that sparked the mass resignation from the City of Guelph’s AAC.

Devin Sisak left in March, before the resignations in Guelph, but after he saw what was happening there, he figured it was time to speak up.

“My son is 12. He has a disability and uses a wheelchair,” he said. “I really wanted to have an influence on shaping the future of the city so that it was inclusive and equitable for him and others that have disabilities as well.”

That made the decision even harder for Sisak. The final straw, he said, was the issue of accessible parking improvements.

“We were asked to submit questions ahead of time. Then after we submitted questions, we were told that [staff] wouldn’t be going above their workload to answer the questions,” Sisak explained. “That was really defeating.”

He said he wasn’t surprised as there wasn’t much consultation with city staff on any projects and he felt the AAC was performative.

“So, I started Barrier Free Cambridge. It’s a grassroots community-led organization to advocate from the outside about accessibility needs and really empower residents to use their voices to share their accessibility needs and their concerns so that things move in the right path.”

Sisak said the city has failed to meet its legal obligations under Ontario’s accessibility laws and called Cambridge’s multi-year accessibility plan outdated.

“There’s annual status reports that go with that, where the municipality says, ‘This is what we’ve done. This is where we are at accomplishing the goals set out in the plan.’ Since 2022, Cambridge hasn’t had one,” Sisak alleged.

In a statement emailed to CTV News, a spokesperson for the city said they do provide a yearly review with status updates.

“The Multi-Year Accessibility Plan has been drafted and is in its final stages. As there have been many recent accessibility initiatives, staff are compiling, consulting and reviewing with departments across the city one final time before bringing the plan to council’s Accessibility Advisory Committee, the public, and then to City of Cambridge council,” the statement read, in part.

Sisak also became the subject of an investigation by the city this week over allegations of workplace harassment when he volunteered on the committee.

Sisak claimed he is being targeted because of his outspoken advocacy on accessibility issues. The city, however, could not comment on that matter.

Either way, Sisak has vowed to keep an eye on council to create a more accessible city.