Accessibility and Inclusion for People with Disabilities

The City of Vancouver understands that legislation protecting people with disabilities provides us with a floor, not ceiling, and the spirit of the law goes well beyond that. The City is committed to ensuring that people with disabilities are provided an accessible and equitable place where they can live, work, learn, play, and thrive.

In 2021, Vancouver City Council identified five core values for the city: livability, equity and inclusion, innovation, sustainability and resiliency, and community trust and relationships. All of these core values intersect with and reflect a prioritization of accessibility, inclusion, and justice for our disability community. 

Notice Under the Americans with Disabilities Act and Section 504

In accordance with the requirements of title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (“ADA”) and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, the City of Vancouver will not discriminate against qualified individuals with disabilities on the basis of disability in its services, programs, or activities. We strive to ensure that every program, service, activity, and facility operated or funded by the City of Vancouver is accessible to people with disabilities.

Effective Communication  

The City of Vancouver will generally, upon request, provide appropriate aids and services leading to effective communication for qualified persons with disabilities so they can participate equally all programs, services, and activities, including qualified sign language interpreters, documents in Braille, and other ways of making information and communications accessible to people who have speech, hearing, or vision impairments.

Modifications to Policies and Procedures 

The City of Vancouver will make all reasonable modifications to policies and programs to ensure that people with disabilities have an equal opportunity to enjoy all of its programs, services, and activities. For example, individuals with service animals are welcomed in City of Vancouver offices, even where pets are generally prohibited.

Anyone who requires an auxiliary aid or service for effective communication, or a modification of policies or procedures to participate in a City program, service, or activity should contact the office of the ADA Coordinator as soon as possible but no later than 48 hours before the scheduled event. See below for contact information.

The City of Vancouver will not place a surcharge on a particular individual with a disability or any group of individuals with disabilities to cover the cost of providing auxiliary aids/services or reasonable modifications of policy.

The ADA does not require the City of Vancouver to take any action that would fundamentally alter the nature of its programs or services or impose an undue financial or administrative burden. 

Request Accommodations

The City may include instructions about how to request accommodations (e.g. translator, barrier removal, etc.), or documents/materials in alternate formats in any letter, email, newsletter or website used to announce, invite or promote a City program, service or activity. If this information is not provided, please contact the City’s ADA Coordinator to make your request. Please make requests for accommodation at meetings or events at least one week in advance.

Requests for accommodation at a City meeting or event should include:

• The requestor’s name, address, email and telephone number (if any)
• A description of the program, service or activity where the accommodation is required
• The location of the program, service or activity
• A brief description of why the accommodation is needed

Requests for materials in alternate formats should include:

• The requestor’s name, address, email and telephone number (if any)
• The name or description of the City document or materials to be reformatted
• What type of format is desired (e.g. Braille, audio recording, computer disk, etc.)
• A brief description of why the alternate format is needed

The City ADA Coordinator or the responsible City department will respond to the request within 15 calendar days or in advance of a scheduled meeting or event. If the response does not satisfactorily resolve the issue, the requestor may file a formal grievance with the City. All requests for accommodations and alternate formats will be kept on file for at least three years.

File an Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) Complaint

If you feel you or another person have been denied access to a City facility, program, service or activity, please send a letter or an email to the City of Vancouver ADA Coordinator that includes the following information:

• Your full name, address, and telephone number;
• The full name of the person who was discriminated against (if someone other than yourself);
• The name and address of the program, service, activity or facility where the incident took place;
• A description of the incident, the date(s) it occurred, and the name(s) of any city employees involved (if known); and
• Other information that you believe necessary to support your complaint. Please send us copies of any relevant documents, but keep the originals for your own records.

Please send your grievance to:

Lisa Takach
Acting Risk Manager
City of Vancouver
City Manager’s Office
P.O. Box 1995
Vancouver, WA 98668-1995
lisa.takach@cityofvancouver.us

Employment Accessibility and Requesting Accommodations 

People with disabilities are protected from discrimination in employment under Title I of the ADA. Title I requires that reasonable accommodations are provided to qualified candidates and employees with disabilities so that they are able to fully engage in the hiring process and perform the essential functions of their jobs. The City of Vancouver does not discriminate on the basis of disability in its hiring or employment practices and complies with all regulations published by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission under title I of the ADA.

Policy

Please review the Disability Accommodation Employment Policy (314) available to all employees via Sharepoint.

Request Accommodations

If you are a person who needs an accommodation in order to fully access the application or hiring process or if you are an employee who needs an accommodation in order to complete the essential functions of your job, please reach out to:

Jeff Azul
The HR Leave Administration Team
jeff.azul@cityofvancouver.us
360-487-8407

Physical Space Accessibility: Submit Barrier Removal Request

If you have encountered an accessibility barrier while navigating the built environment of the City of Vancouver (i.e. sidewalks, curb cuts, city-owned or occupied buildings, parks, parking lots, etc.), please submit a Public Works Service Request.

You may also contact the ADA Coordinator to report the issue (especially if the barrier presents an urgent or substantial barrier of any kind). See contact information below.

Online Accessibility 

If you have encountered an accessibility barrier while navigating the City of Vancouver website, please submit your feedback. 

You may also contact the ADA Coordinator to report the issue (especially if the barrier presents an urgent or substantial barrier of any kind). See contact information below.

Contact

For more information about the information here or about anything related to disability accessibility and inclusion at the City of Vancouver, please contact: 

Jen Dugger Spalding
ADA Coordinator
415 W 6th Street
Vancouver, WA 98660
360-726-7122 
jen.duggerspalding@cityofvancouver.us