1. Access Culture: A Guide to Planning Accessible Visits in Columbia, Missouri
This project was created as an attempt to fill a need I encountered when working as a Direct Service Provider in a community integration program for adults with disabilities. When planning community activities with individuals, I found that I needed to know information about community venue accessibility that was not publicly available. Many times the only way of assessing if a venue was a good fit for an individuals accessibility requirements was to simply go to the venue, with the knowledge that if the venue did not accommodate that individual’s accessibility needs, we would have wasted individual and company time and resources. There are few feelings more disheartening than getting to a venue for a planned activity and discovering that it is not accessible. The goal of this guide is to equip individuals living in or visiting Columbia, Missouri with the information needed to make determinations about a venue’s ability to meet their accessibility needs before they arrive at the venue. It is my hope that this information will lead to more successful community integration for individuals with mobility-related disabilities in the city of Columbia.
Venues described in this guide include:
Theaters:
The Blue Note
Columbia Entertainment Company
Goodrich Forum 8
Jesse Auditorium
Macklanburg Playhouse
Maplewood Barn Theater
Missouri Theater
Ragtag Cinema
Regal Columbia Stadium 14
Rose Music Hall
Talking Horse Theater
Warehouse Theater
Museums and Galleries:
Boone County Historical Society
Columbia Art Leauge Exhibitions
Enns Entomology Museum
Greg Hardwick Gallery
George Caleb Bingham Gallery Museum of Art and Archaeology Sidney Larson Gallery State Historical Society of Missouri
Stephens College Historic Costume Gallery
Parks:
Albert-Oakland Park
Cosmo Park
Cosmo-Bethel Park
Flat Branch Park
Forum Nature Area
Gans Creek Nature Area
Garth Nature Area
Grindstone Nature Area
Jay Dix Station
Rock Bridge Memorial State Park
Rock Quarry Park
Shelter Gardens
Stephens Lake Park
Twin Lakes Recreation Area Recreation Centers:
The ARC
The Armory Public Water Parks:
Albert-Oakland Family Aquatic Center
Douglass Family Acquatic Center
Flat Branch Spraygrounds
Lake of the Woods Pool
Little Mates Cove (Twin Lakes)
Stephens Lake Swimming Beach and Spraygrounds
A Page in this Guide
Most entries include aerial photographs indicating at least one smooth-grade route from accessible parking to entry. These images were provided by the City of Columbia.
Each entry includes the venue name, address, and phone number as available.
Daniel Boone Regional Library
100 W. Broadway
For accessible smooth-grade entry, there are two routes available. The first is parking in the lot south of the library building. The building can be accessed via a long ramp, which has double railings. The ramp has two inclined areas of approximately 30ft each, with a small landing between them.
Alternatively, parking is available north of the library across Broadway.  It has several accessible parking spaces and a paved path that cuts across the landscaping to allow easy access to the sidewalk. The crosswalk across Broadway contains several rough or broken patches of asphalt Doors are automatic. There is an elevator to reach the second floor, located behind the main stairwell. The elevator is of limited size, and turning a larger mobility device around in the elevator may be challenging. Some shelves are placed closely, with narrow aisles that may not comfortably accommodate larger mobility devices.
For accessible entry for those with lower endurance, there are several routes available.  The first is parking in the lot south of the library building. The building can be accessed via stairs (14 steps) or a ramp consisting of two 30ft inclines with a small landing between them. Total distance from accessible parking to entry via ramp: approximately 140 ft. There is no seating available between parking and entry on this route.
Alternatively, parking is available north of the library across Broadway. There are no benches located on the north side of Broadway. There are three benches on the south side of Broadway between the crosswalk and the library entrance.
Seating is scattered throughout the library and is widely available. Some mobility devices are available for use while browsing the library.
At the base of the south entrance ramp is a call box, which can be used to request a mobility device be brought to you for use at the library. Library staff are available to assist patrons with locating books or other needs.
(floor 1) Single-stall unisex restrooms
(floor 2) Multi-stall gendered restrooms facing main floor, single-stall gendered restrooms facing administrative offices.
This is the smooth-grade venue information box. It contains information relevant to individuals who require smooth-grade access, including those who use large mobility devices such as power chairs, wheelchairs, and scooters, those who use smaller mobility devices such as walkers, and those who do not use mobility devices whose mobility concerns make navigating stairs and curbs undesirable.
This is the lower endurance venue information box. It contains information relevant to individuals who have limited walking endurance. It includes measurements of distance and frequency of seating, so that users can determine for themselves whether a venue meets their needs. An ongoing goal of this project is to create a product that supports individuals’ self-determination and focuses on equipping the individual to make informed choices about whether a venue meets their accessibility needs, rather than the guide making that judgement for the individual.
This is the staff information box. For this venue, it contains information about services that venue staff provide. In other venues, it might also contain information relevant to individuals who have professional support staff to assist them in the community, such as whether a staff person will be charged admission fees at a theater.
This is the restroom information box. It describes the location of venue restrooms and whether they are multi-stall, single stall, gendered, or unisex.
This project was designed by Sarah Coakley, under the mentorship of Melinda Odum, through the TIPS for Kids program. Additional support was provided by: Services for Independent Living, Alternative Community Training, the City of Columbia, and the staff of participating venues. This project is supported by the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) under grant #T73MC00022, Missouri LEND. This information or content and conclusions are those of the authors and should not be construed as the official position or policy of, nor should any endorsements be inferred by HRSA, HHS, or the U.S. Government.