The City of Hamilton (Ontario) Resolves …
“Motion: Requiring the City of Hamilton to be more accessible to the hearing impaired
WHEREAS, According to Statistics Canada, 40% of adults aged 20 to 79 have hearing loss in one or both ears;
WHEREAS, The Ontario Building Code requires that buildings of assembly occupancy with an area of more than 100m2 and an occupant load of more than 75 shall be equipped with assistive listening systems encompassing the entire seating area;
WHEREAS, Hearing Loops provide a direct signal to hearing aids, remove unwanted background noise, and eliminate the need for alternative headset/receiver devices for citizens who are hearing impaired;
WHEREAS, other cities have mandated Hearing Loop technology, including New York City, where City Council recently passed legislation requiring that public assembly areas constructed or renovated using city dollars must install Hearing Loop technology.
WHEREAS, requiring Hearing Loops in publicly owned buildings would make Hamilton a leader in inclusivity and accessibility, and set an example for other municipalities across Canada;
WHEREAS, the installation of Hearing Loops in public buildings exemplifies the City of Hamilton’s vision to be the best place to raise a child and age successfully;
THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED:
- (a) That IEC 60118-4 compliant Hearing Loops be required in all newly constructed or renovated City of Hamilton public assembly areas equipped with sound systems and access to microphones, and,
- (b) That an inventory of existing public assembly areas within the City of Hamilton with sound systems and microphones be presented to the Emergency and Community Services Committee, and that priority locations for hearing loop installation, costs, and potential funding sources be identified (including government grants).”
The above Motion CARRIED unanimously in a standing vote at the Council Meeting of December 8th, 2017.”
That’s the climax of the story. How did we get here?
City Councillor Donna Skelly (now an MLA in the Provincial Legislature) happened to meet with Hamilton resident Julia Colantino at a local event. Julia has been hearing with a Cochlear implant since the age of 3. The chat led to a discussion about hearing loss and hearing access in the city. Councillor Skelly was intrigued and hired Julia to put together a proposal to City Council that ultimately resulted in the resolution above.
In the preparation of the proposal, I met with Julia, Councillor Skelly, and her staff to discuss and demonstrate Hearing Loop technology. Julia participated in the discussion via her cochlear telecoil and a temporary hearing loop and was able to inform the meeting of the benefit of hearing via this technology.
In time, the proposal made its way through the Hamilton Accessibility Committee before it was recommended to the City Council for its December 2017 meeting. Councillor Skelly presented the proposal to the City Council. The discussion that followed was most encouraging in terms of sensing the importance of providing hearing access to Hamilton residents at various venues throughout the city. It should be noted, that while several Hamilton area churches already had hearing loops, none of the City of Hamilton facilities had them.
What happened next?
In addition to acquiring some grants, Councillor Skelly was able to provide city funding for the installation of hearing loops in three rooms at the Sackville Hill Seniors Recreation Centre. These were completed in 2018.
The momentum created by the Sackville Hill installations resulted in another installation at Hamilton’s Bernie Morelli Recreation Centre in 2019.
And then?
While there have been some attempts by the local CHHA branch to promote hearing access via hearing loop installations in the city, the energy initiated by the Council’s resolution has faded. As a resolution, it lacked any requirement for enforcement through the City Building Department.
A word to those who would “copy” the Hamilton initiative: Rather than a resolution, create a Bylaw that requires Hearing Loops in places of assembly. A Bylaw makes enforcement possible.
Better Hearing Solutions has installed a few hundred temporary and permanent assistive listening and window intercom systems in venues covering a wide variety of applications across Canada since the mid 1980’s. Advocacy and education go hand in hand with our work in the field as we bring a better hearing experience to Canadians.