WHEREAS:

• 24% of Ontarians have a disability, thousands of them children; for decades, housing policy has discriminated against people with disabilities by building homes for people without disabilities;
• It is urgent that 100% of units in all new multi-unit housing projects use universal design, to make up for decades of neglecting accessible housing;
• The UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, and the Ontario Human Rights Code prohibit discrimination on the basis of disability;
• The ongoing practice of permitting inaccessible housing to be approved and financed is in direct contravention of the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, and the Ontario Human Rights Code;
• The Ontario Building Code only requires that 15% of new apartments be “visitable” but not accessible enough for a person with a disability to live there;
• This perpetuates barriers erected against people with disabilities who have the same right to housing as all Ontarians; universal design will accommodate almost anyone of any age or ability and demonstrate an underlying commitment to including everyone with a wide range of abilities and disabilities;
• Thousands are forced out of their dwellings at the most vulnerable time in their lives, simply because their homes are not built to accommodate their emergent needs; this results in “hallway medicine” in hospitals, and long waiting lists for nursing homes; millions of healthcare dollars could be saved by enabling people to remain in their own homes if they are accessible;

AND WHEREAS people with disabilities have been trapped in their apartments during power disruptions;

We the undersigned petition the Legislative Assembly of Ontario as follows:

1. Comply with the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, and Ontario Human Rights Code by amending the Ontario Building Code to make universal design the mandatory standard for100% of units in all multi-unit housing developments; and
2. Require that any public funds or concessions conferred on municipalities, developers, or any other organization for newhousing be exclusively for universally designed housing units; and
3. Require that every apartment building (rentalor ownership) have on hand a generator capable of powering the elevators and emergency lighting in all corridors for persons with wheelchairs and mobility issues.